Homeowners Remodel Early, Looking to Future
A recent remodeling trend shows that homeowners are remodeling their homes earlier in life to make it easier to remain in homes longer and “age in place.” In our column in the Buffalo News Homefinder Extra (article is not yet online), we featured technologies that help seniors “age in place.” A number of home renovations, however, help make it easier to age in place. Kohler, for example, has introduced walk in tubs and showers; other homeowners are moving bedrooms to the first floor to reduce the need for stairs in the future. Home developers, too, are introducing ‘universal design,’ which makes new homes suitable for anyone at any time in their life: one story layouts and wider hallways make it possible for handicapped people to move in without making changes. These renovations, unlike new technologies such as Artemis (which helps change your home into a network of interconnected monitoring and safety features) can be very costly and time-consuming, though they do pay off in the long run.
