Extending your home to fit your family's needs

A lot can happen in your family's life that can make an addition or extension necessary for your home. You buy a home with two bedrooms when you start a new family, but then maybe you have another child and therefore need a new bedroom. Perhaps one bathroom is no longer enough to suit the needs of your household as your children get older. Or maybe you bring in an elderly relative who can't get around your home very well without some additional support. Whatever the reasoning is, there may come a time when your needs change and you may want to extend your home a bit to make way for new changes. As with any other home renovation work, it's smart to take a deliberate and thoughtful approach to this type of thing. Taking things too fast can result in you expending more money and time than you really have to.

Bedrooms

One of the first things that people end up having to change is the number of bedrooms in the home. As children grow older, they need more space and this can lead to a need for more bedrooms. While it's possible to keep young children in the same room for years, the truth is that many people prefer to have their children sleep in separate rooms as they age. Whatever your reasoning, you may end up being one of the people who needs to consider getting a new bedroom put in.

This is a process that should be gone over in detail with a qualified contractor. The contractor will be able to give you your options in plain detail while also helping you consider ways to save money. For example, not everyone will need to have a new room installed to their home. In some cases, a basement can be finished to act as a bedroom and solve the problem without a major construction job. It all comes down to your location, the type of house you have and the amount you want to spend.

Bathrooms

Even in households where there is just one child, many homeowners decide to have an additional bathroom space installed sooner or later. It's one thing to share a bathroom in a house with two adults and one small child. It's an entirely different thing to share a bathroom with two adults and a healthy teenage child. In situations like this, most people would rather invest in a new bathroom setup over simply moving to another home. Thankfully, there are a number of options here for homeowners to take advantage of that aren't necessarily that expensive.

The first option is to add on an entirely new bathroom. While this option may be the most expensive way to go, it's definitely the one that will result in the least amount of conflicts when it comes to using the bathroom. A full bathroom will include a shower, sink, toilet and any other normal things that are found in a general home bathroom. Beyond this option, there is the option to install a half bath. A half bath is a bathroom that doesn't have all of the amenities of a full bathroom, but still has a toilet and sink. This can serve to eliminate most of the common issues arising from only having one bathroom and it can be substantially cheaper than having a full bathroom installed.

Support Facilities

As you age or decide to take in elderly relatives, you may find that the way your home is built is not necessarily great for everyone. Elderly people need to have special considerations taken into account when designing a home for them to live in. This includes the installation of ramps, guide rails and other extensions that can help make the home more livable for your elderly loved ones.

A great place to start is with a ramp leading into your front door. The ramp will make your house more accessible even if no one is in a wheel chair. Ramps are much easier for older family members to walk up, resulting in a safer overall environment. Remodeling your bathroom to accommodate for the needs of an older family member can be smart, too. In this case, installing a larger walk-in shower, guide rails and a textured shower floor can be a great start.

There are a lot of ways for you to make sure your family members are getting the safe, convenient environment they deserve. While it may take some time and effort to extend your home to suit the changing needs of your family, the results are well worth the work. When you work with the right contractor on these types of issues, you may be surprised at how fast and affordable these extensions can really be.

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