Building Your Custom Home With Kids In Mind
Building the home of your dreams is most likely a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so you want to get it right. And when you build a home, you’re building it for your whole family, not just today, but well into the future. Children that you have now or may have in the future factor into every decision—from location to smallest home design details. So if you have kids to consider (either your own or someone else’s), avoid dissatisfaction and additional changes and cost down the line by considering all family needs upfront.
When you’re creating your wish list, here are some elements to consider to keep the whole family comfortable, safe, and happy now and well into the future.
Layout and Space
Open concept floor plans are great for flexibility and keeping an eye on everyone, but it’s helpful to have some separated zones as well, after all, there is such a thing as too much togetherness.
Storage: built-in shelving and custom cabinetry with lots of outlets are useful in most areas of your home but especially larger shared spaces. Consider including window seats and sizeable closets to make rooms more flexible and useful.
Flex rooms: not only do you want to be able to transition certain rooms when kids grow out of certain phases, but you also want to have some flexibility with how some rooms are used now. Think about adding features (like a closet, built-in shelving or even an external door) now, so you don’t have to do a big remodel later. Create at least one room in your home with flexibility in mind—both now and into the future. An attic, room over the garage, or other “extra space” areas can be great for this.
Bathrooms: consider at least one updated “jack and jill” bathroom with two rooms opening into a shared double vanity area with a door leading into the toilet, bathtub/shower space. This allows privacy when one person wants to use the vanity while another person takes a bath.
Drop zones: If you have the opportunity to create an oversized laundry room that functions as the main drop zone and mud room of your home, do it. You won’t regret it. If nothing else, consider working open and sizable entryway areas into your front and back door design. These are valuable spaces for keeping clutter and messes contained and out of other areas in your home
Kitchen
You’ll need ample space for help in the kitchen, for chores to be completed, and for memories to be made. An island with ample space for multiple workers at a time is an incredibly helpful area. It’s also important to keep kids in mind when thinking about where to place certain styles of cabinets and drawers. Shallow drawers are very useful at lower levels to store kid-safe items. And when it comes to materials in the kitchen, stainless steel can look very dirty very quickly so make sure it’s smudge-proof. And quartz is a great man made material that is highly durable.
Safety
According to the National Safety Council, 53.6 percent of all injury-involved accidents occur at home. It makes sense to put some extra thought into home safety. And you don’t have to sacrifice beautiful design to create spaces that are safer for all ages. These are some areas to consider:
Shelving: Consider built-ins as opposed to freestanding bookcases or shelving.
Toxic materials – Choose zero VOC (volatile organic compound) paints and use low-VOC vinyl and laminate flooring.
Stairs: Keep in mind how you will child-proof your home after construction. For example, stairs that flare out at the bottom are difficult to accommodate a baby gate.
Tamper-resistant outlets are a low-cost must.
If you’re considering a fireplace, discuss with your builder the safest design and explore a custom gate or screen.
plan for cords and electronic equipment to be housed in compartments that are high enough or set back enough to avoid being pulled down.
Be careful with glass: It’s important to think about where you place windows and how many mirrors are hanging around the house and where they are located.
Recreation
Think about both indoor and outdoor spaces that can serve as areas of entertainment for your kids, and all their friends and don’t forget the outdoors. Choosing a large lot for your custom home comes in handy when the kids need space to burn off energy and goof around safely.