Floorplan Evolution – How Homes are Changing

The Priority Group helps clients, sell, and buy homes however a couple of the things that we specialize in are building homes and staging homes for showing. We’ve definitely noticed a metamorphosis in the way people are designing their homes and it’s mainly due to the pandemic. It’s caused people to work and live at home more than ever which means practical utilization of space is of utmost importance. As an example, we have less need for a formal dining space and more need for a second office or learning area. And that’s not likely to change any time soon. Most corporations that have staff who can work from home either have a plan to do so longer term or have switched permanently to remote working. In today’s article, we’re going to explore this a little more and see what folks are doing to utilize their existing rooms or change a new construction layout out in their new homes.

Do we Really Need a Formal Dining Room?

The answer in today’s environment, is no for most people. Using your dining room once a year during the holidays versus having a dedicated space for a second home office is a no brainer for most. It’s one thing to work on your kitchen counter for a short period of time but another to do so long term. There’s no privacy for meetings and the surrounding noises interrupt and aren’t professional. It’s cute to see people’s meeting interrupted by the family pet once in a while but I guarantee you, the boss won’t think it’s fun when it happens all of the time. Transforming a dining room into an office is easy. Simply take out the dining table, put it in storage and add a chair and desk. Decorating the space will make it feel more comfortable and motivate you over the long run. Rooms meant for dining usually have more space than a typical office would so you can add some functionality with an accent table and chairs in case you need to have a “meeting” with your spouse.

Home Schooling

At home learning was once a whole lot less common than it is now. There are still a lot of cities that have schools closed. Have a room for the kids to take online classes in is a no brainer. With two parents potentially working at home and likely 2 children, the average family needs a dedicated space for each activity. That loft space that you once used as a recreation or television area makes an excellent classroom for the kids. Utilizing headphones, you can have more than one child in a single space. Here’s where making the room functional as well as inviting will be especially important. Kids always like stability and if they feel that their home classroom is a good one, they’ll likely be able to focus better.

New Construction and the Remote Family

Fewer bedrooms to accommodate for a second home office, basements, attics, and even separate units if there’s enough property have become more common place in today’s new construction. Expanding the footprint of a new home has also become common to provide for remote classrooms for the kids in the family. New construction needs have morphed from entertainment spaces to more practical spaces. For instance, that spare bedroom or the basement playroom has now become a classroom and the finished attic you once used for storage is now an office. Most likely, in new construction, families are adding to the footprint of their home and putting in these spaces. You can always turn them into another type of space later but not having the square footage to do it in the first place isn’t an option anymore.

For more information on this topic, to see other blogs and to contact the Priority Group, go to www.omahaprioritygroup.com