It’s common for homeowners planning a renovation project to have a long wish list. You may love the look of a friend’s home or may want to recreate a room that you saw in a magazine or online, but remember that your house has to work for your family, not someone else’s. Think carefully about how you use the space you currently have and how to make life easier and more convenient.
Consider Traffic Flow
Think about what happens when people come home. If you typically take off your shoes and drop your mail and keys in the entryway, that’s an area that might benefit from more space or better organization. If family members often cook together and bump into each other, changing the layout of the kitchen to create more open space or adding an island can make preparing meals easier.
Think About Supervision
If you have young kids and you have a hard time keeping an eye on them when you’re in one room and they’re in another, you might want to consider creating an open floor plan. If you want to monitor your kids and make sure that they’re focusing on their homework, you can create a study area in or near the main living area.
Figure Out How to Arrange Furniture
Changing the dimensions of a room, even a little bit, can impact your options when it comes to furniture. You may discover that if you remodel the living room the way you’re considering, your current sofa and loveseat won’t fit, or you may realize that you’ll be left with large, empty spaces that you’ll need to fill.
Consider Where to Place Outlets
A typical family uses several electronic devices at the same time. Even when a device isn’t being used, it may need to be charged. If you’re going to have your house renovated, ask yourself whether your family could benefit from additional outlets.
The kitchen tends to be an area where family members congregate and spend a significant amount of time. Kids often do homework in the kitchen so parents can supervise them while making dinner. If you and your children currently compete for a limited number of outlets, think about where you could add more to solve the problem.
Create More Storage Space
Families often struggle to find places to store all of their clothes, children’s toys and other possessions. Decluttering is a good idea, but sometimes you need more space to keep essentials organized. If that’s the case, you may want to add built-in shelves or drawers, or change the way that cabinets are designed to create some extra storage.
Consider Your Current and Future Lifestyle
When planning a renovation, remember that your family will most likely live in the house for several years. Don’t just think about how to improve life now; think about how your needs and preferences may change in the future so you can design a house that will continue to work well for you.
