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Home Renovations    -   Construction and Design

      Current Trends

Renovations go through trends from time to time and reflect the nature of our changing lifestyles. Here is a sample of current trends and their potential effects on home renovations.

Independent Seniors: Aging Gracefully
Significant changes in Canadian demographics are impacting housing. The number of those over 65 now makes up 13.0 per cent of the Canadian population according to Statistics Canada 2001 Census report. In the five years leading up to 2001, the median age of Canadians jumped by 2.3 years to 37.6, the largest increase in more than a century. Post-war baby boomers are now reaching retirement age and doing so with style.

Baby boomers have spent more than any previous generation to maintain their health and fitness levels. As with most seniors, baby boomers prefer to live in their homes as long as their health allows which may be a very long time. With age, there often arises mobility, sight and hearing challenges. Many people are renovating to create a home they can age with them and allow them to live comfortably. Renovations are often made to accommodate walkers and wheelchairs.

Common renovations include wider doorways, a master bedroom on the first floor, open kitchens, lower light switches, ramps instead of stairs, remote control lighting, and security systems.

In-Home Offices
Telecommuting is growing at a quick pace. With all the electronic connections of e-mail, fax, cellular phones and the new evolving technologies for computers, the world is shrinking and there are fewer reasons to have large central offices in the high-rent sections of town. Meetings can be held from home and constant communication can be maintained. Of course, these tools and benefits work just as well for the home-based business, which is also growing rapidly. The result is that many people are now turning their spare bedroom or den into a legitimate small business centre.

High technology is a catch-22: it unchains many people their desks with the use of laptops, cell phones and palm pilots but the portable nature of these devices also means the workday never seems to end. Traditionally, 5 o'clock was the time when people wrapped up and went home. Today, many professionals are always 'wired'. Anyone who works long intense days also needs some relaxation. That's where home entertainment centers come in.

Home Entertainment Centres
The cocooning trend continues to shape the lives and living rooms of many Canadian homes. Today's entertainment includes using computers and the Internet. More than one-third (37 percent) of the families surveyed in an Ipsos-Reid poll released in 2002 said that they have redesigned, reconfigured or renovated a portion of their living space to accommodate their computer. The same study found that the average family spends more than 1,600 hours online per year.

Our homes are also becoming cozy places to watch movies - that perennial favourite form of entertainment. Why suffer in the cold, in long line-ups at the theatre; finding parking; and eating supernaturally yellow popcorn? Why not curl up in comfortable clothes, grab some snacks and watch your favourite actors perform in your very own theatre complete with mini satellite dish reception, digital sound, DVD, TV, laser disc, and surround sound.

Multi-Level Family
Due to the changing economy, children are leaving home at a much older age than they used to. It is not uncommon for our adult children to be with us into the mid-twenties. Even if they get married and move away - divorce may mean the return of an adult child along with a grandchild or two. Then, perhaps either one or both of our aged parents may need some caring for. A legal secondary suite may be a good option for you and a very necessary one. Check the regulations for the zoning of your home.

As the world around us changes so do our homes and our lifestyles. What changes will the future hold?

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