5 Changes to Make Your Home Work For You

 **Collaborative Post**

For many finding the perfect place to call home can be a stressful time. There are many things to consider such as location, space and no doubt a checklist of items each person in the family would love to feature in the home (and let's not even mention all the back and forth, delays, fees and legal stuff!). But once you find your dream home, that place you can settle down in, its a pretty good feeling right? 

But more often than not, when you find that home it may not tick all the boxes, the important thing to remember though is that changes, adaptions and work can be done to your home. It doesn't have to be perfect straight away, if you are willing to do a little work you can change a house that ticks most boxes to a dream home that ticks them all. 

Keep reading below to hear some of our suggestions on changes you can make to make your home work for you for years and years to come. 

Use Rooms How You Need Them 

Just because a room is shown as a living room or bedroom it doesn't mean that's its only use. Don't be afraid to move things around to work for you and that includes rooms! It could be taking a small bedroom and turning it into an office, gym or even craft room. You could even turn an unused bedroom space into an en-suite or additional bathroom. The same can be said for other rooms too, have a small dining room but big unused living room? If you love entertaining and spending family time around the table switch them up, have a large dining area space and a small and cosy living area instead. 

Remember that this is your home, it should work for you. So don't be afraid to shuffle round rooms to maximise the spaces you will use the most and create rooms you will actually use. 

Stair Lift for Accessibility

If the home you are in is going to be your "forever" home that you grow old in, its worth looking at what changes you can make to ensure your home stays the safe, welcoming space is always has been for you. As people age, one of the first things that becomes an issue for people is tackling the stairs. This becomes a particularly big issue if the only bedroom or bathroom is situated upstairs. Whilst a installing a stair lift may seem like an investment, companies such as Handicare Stairlifts UK can help you find a stairlift that fits in with the feel of your home, your budget and can make installation quick, easy and fuss free. 

Once installed you have peace of mind that regardless of age or mobility you will be able to easily access the whole of your home with ease. 

Storage 

Storage is a big issue for almost all of us, especially if you have kids! It can often feel like no matter how much storage you have, you always need more! However planning ahead and packing in lots of handy hidden storage can be a great solution to keep storage at bay for years to come. For example you could turn often unused spaces such as under the stairs or old boiler cupboards into storage by placing shelving inside. If you have a need for lots of storage you could even consider having a sturdy floor placed in your loft space freeing up the whole loft for more storage room. 

Wet Room & En-suites 

It is no secret that a good bathroom and kitchen can add lots of value on your home, but they can also make a huge difference to you whilst living in that home too. A bathroom is something you use every day and so it needs to be a practical and accessible space but there are many things to consider when it comes to planning your bathroom. Decisions such as bath or shower or even a wet room, one key thing to think of when deciding too is accessibility. If you struggle getting in and out of the bath (or think you might in the future) investing in a wet room may be a much better answer.

Consider an Extension 

Whilst building an extension is obviously a big job that requires lots of planning and of course a fair amount of money it is definitely an option to consider for many reasons. If you have found a home you love, in the location you wanted and the only thing wrong is the lack of a bedroom or lack of more space, an extension could be the answer. It will not only give you more space, but since it is being built from scratch you can design how it looks too. 

You will need planning permission for many extensions (which is an additional cost too) so this is something to consider first. However it is the perfect, permanent way to add more space to your home. 

What changes have you made to make your home work for you? Or what changes would you like to make? 

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