10 Ways Home Design Will Forever Be Changed by Covid-19

If there is one thing that is clear about the Coronavirus pandemic, it’s that it will forever change the way we work, play, and learn. Things are never going to be the same, and the impact of COVID-19 will ripple through every facet of our private and work lives.

How we entertain ourselves has already taken a heavy hit from the social distancing rules. We see massive changes in the administration of schools, offices, and transportation: with new methods markedly different from past ones. 

But one area where it is not distinct what form the changes imposed by COVID-19 will take is in home design. That is probably because people’s homes are their last resort for maintaining privacy and a sense of control over their lives.

As a result, changing home design to suit the current realities will not be as immediate as other areas. Moreover, as Peak Residential Inc. points out, buying a new home or redesigning an old one costs a lot of money, and most people don’t have the money.

That means the effect of COVID-19 on home design will be slower to manifest. But that is not to say changes are not already happening. In this post, we will examine some of the ways that Coronavirus alters home design.

• More attention to details

The need for kids to school online and adults to work remotely makes the current home design grossly inadequate. Families will be present in the home 98% of the time, but how they use it will differ. These different uses will have their diverse space requirements, and they must not interfere with one another.

• Easy cleaning

Homes will need surfaces that are easier to clean. We expect to see a lot more washable wall surfaces. People will tend toward a more minimalist design approach because they want to reduce the number of places where pathogens can hide in their homes. There will be a preference for curved wall surfaces versus angled ones because the former is easier to clean.

• Introduction of antibacterial materials

Antibacterial materials are going to become a lot more popular. That will include metals like copper, brass, and bronze, which have well-documented abilities to kill germs. Materials like cork, oak, and bamboo, which inhibit the growth of microorganisms, will also see an increase in their adoption.

• Purpose-built offices

New home offices will not have the makeshift nature of current ones. They will not be a stand-in for the actual office but as replacements for real offices. The need to have the same functionality level as a traditional office will see more of them stand as separate structures from the main home.

• Mudrooms and decontamination areas

Many homes will have a decontamination area where family members who come from outside will be able to dispose of their clothes and disinfect themselves before entering the house. These rooms will expand on the idea of the traditional mudroom by performing additional functions.

• Isolation areas

New homes will also have areas that allow family members to put space between those who are sick and those who are healthy. That will mean the addition of structures for quarantining sick people to prevent them from infecting the rest of the household. These rooms will be self-contained and separate from the main home.

• Better kitchen design

Kitchens, already significant, will become even more vital. Kitchens will need to be larger, with massive storage, because people will not want to make as many trips to the stores as before. Also, more homeowners will become preppers. Since families will be doing less eating-out and more home-cooking, the kitchen’s role as a gathering place will become more valuable.

• More privacy

There will be a movement away from the open floor plan that has become so popular. Families will spend a lot of time at home, and family members will value their personal spaces even more. Areas will also be closed-off to keep the activities happening in one location from disturbing those in other places.

• Additions

Since more college-age kids will be staying at home and grandparents are more likely to stay with their children, homes will have more people living in them than before. Homeowners are going to try to maximize their available space by adding more structures. More people are going to add in-law suites and extra rooms to their homes.

• Extensive entertainment systems

Because people will not want to leave home, they will try to meet most of their entertainment needs at home. For this reason, they design the yard to let children do a lot of the activities they usually leave home to do. More homes will have separate movies, games, and sport rooms.