ACCESSIBILITY KEY TO AGING IN PLACE
Open-concept bungalow with room to manoeuvre can be a sensible option
There’s no chance of retirement for me anytime soon, but with my kids grown, and my grandkids afoot, even I can get caught daydreaming of one day sailing off into the sunset with my boat. When I speak to many homeowners who are my age and older, they’re starting to have the same thoughts. They’re ready for the next chapter of their life, but every single one of them has the same theme in common: they want to maintain their independence. While some are looking forward to the social aspect of moving to “adult living ” communities, for many of them, independence starts and ends with living in their own homes.
Are you thinking about the next stage of your life? Here’s what you might want in your forever home.
DOES YOUR CURRENT HOME WORK?
For aging in place, I’ve always thought the best home to look for is a bungalow on a smaller lot. Why? Well, if your mobility is reduced as you age or because of health concerns, navigating stairs multiple times a day can start to become a tiring — not to mention a potentially dangerous task!
A bungalow makes sense because you’ll have all your main living areas (master bedroom, bathroom, kitchen) located on the main level of the home. Everything on the main floor means you can leave the basement unfinished to offer lots of storage and easy access to your HVAC system.
Even your laundry room, which will typically already be in the basement, can be moved upstairs in many cases.
One of the benefits to bungalows that I love for older homeowners, is that they tend to have fewer supporting walls than multi-level homes. That means if you have to take down some walls to allow for more mobility, your contractor will have an easier time making those changes.
MAKING A HOME THAT’S TRULY ACCESSIBLE
Open concept makes a home a lot more accessible — and it’s an ongoing trend, which I love. But what else does a home need to make it functional for everybody?
It starts right at the front door. All doors and entrances need to be wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs and walkers. I like them to be 36 inches (91 centimetres) wide because it allows for greater manoeuvrability, and a good turning radius. For interior entrances, I love using pocket doors if I have the room. The drawback is that you need twice the space for a pocket door than you would a swing door: room for the door itself, and space inside the wall cavity. And of course, if that wall is structural or has electrical wiring, you can forget about adding the pocket door.
I love having my windows open on a nice day. Without a heat recovery ventilation (HRV) system, this is also the best way to promote air exchange in your home. That means a better quality indoor air — which is good for us at any age. Windows should be easy to operate one handed with a crank, such as casement or awning windows to allow every homeowner to keep fresh air flowing.
I know there’s nothing sexy about renovations that are accessibility focused, but hey, there’s no reason they can’t look slick, too. My son renovated his home to be a place he and his wife could grow old in, and instead of using stairs at his front entrance, he used some smart landscaping that sloped upward toward the front door. It’s functional, and it looks good, too.
GOING ROOM BY ROOM
The three most important rooms in any home are the kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom. So how do we make those as accessible as possible? Like I said, you want everything located centrally on the main floor, but what else do you need?
Kitchen design is of the utmost importance when it comes to creating an accessible space. Having countertops, shelves, and appliances low enough for everyone to cook safely is key. I love having a movable kitchen island as well, which can give you extra floor space as needed while still providing a nice centre point to the room.
Many older bathrooms tend to be eight-by-five feet (2.4by-1.5 metres), and that just doesn’t work for people with mobility devices. Ask your contractor if it’s possible to expand the space if it’s too small, by cutting into the room next door. If nowhere else, the bathroom is the one room in the home I’d recommend a pocket door most of all.
The most important way to make a bedroom accessible is to have one on the main level of the home. If you’re planning to stay in your multi-level house, find a space (whether it’s an office, or a den), that can be converted into a bedroom in the future.