Stylish Modifications to Make Your Home Safer
As you get older, it may seem like a daunting task to change your home to fit your new needs, especially if you live alone. You may feel that you don’t want your home to showcase your age, or have clunky or outdated materials around the house. There are so many stylish, aging-in-place mechanisms and modifications to make to your home that can keep it intact. Thankfully, there are options ranging from large to small to add throughout your home. Keep reading to discover some stylish upgrades to make your home safer.
Large Home Modifications
As you take on this project, you may need some assistance from contractors to help make these larger home modifications like creating a no-step entryway for easy home access. Look into creating a small wheelchair ramp where you see fit and widening doorways with lovely trim accents to allow for easy access to other parts of your home. Have the wheelchair ramp blend into your surroundings by matching the materials to your sidewalk– whether they’re brick, concrete, or tile– without distracting from the ambiance of your home.
Another home modification that is a necessity for some is an electric stairlift. This could be an expensive purchase, but it will help make navigating your multi-level home much easier and ease the fear of falling down the stairs while home alone. The cost of electric stairlifts range from about $2,000 to $7,000 depending on the convenience features you’d like added and or customizations to make it more stylish in your home. They even make outdoor chair lifts as well if you’re worried about being able to make it down your deck steps to enjoy some fresh air.
Consider updating your bathroom to make it more accessible by adding a sleek shower seat, a safety bar, and some non-slip marks on the tub or shower floor. Getting rid of carpets or rugs you can slip on while getting out of the bath or shower is crucial for a safe space. You might want to consider a walk-in tub for better accessibility. Walk-in tubs can be pricey, but they have a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors to match your taste and blend in with your current bathroom.
By saving money from aging in place instead of spending it on a retirement community or a senior living facility, you may have some funds to spend on the larger modifications your home needs. If you find yourself needing more money to spend on these bigger ticket purchases, consider a home equity line of credit that will give you the funds as you need for these modifications. This allows you to only borrow what you need and pay off your bill with minimum payments, or pay the full amount if you have it.
Medium Home Modifications
If you’re looking for some home modifications that are not quite as expensive as the larger ones, you still have some options to choose from. For a quick, chic update to your home, think of painting your home in contrasting colors, making it easier to determine the difference between rooms. As you age, certain colors become harder to distinguish from each other, so utilize paint to create more spatial awareness as a way to combat this. Paint door frames a different color than the living space to increase contrast within the room and use paints with a matter or eggshell finish for a better environment for aging in place. This allows you to add some personality to your home while also keeping the colors modern and up-to-date in your home.
If moving up and down the stairs is difficult for you and larger home modifications are out of your budget, look into having a room on the lower level transformed into your bedroom. Think of a home office or a section of the living room where you can use trendy room dividers to distinguish your sleeping space from the rest of the room. If the chosen area has open entryways, add doors to give yourself some privacy. Decorate the space to your current liking and add some personalized decor items like photographs, paintings, and artwork. Include a lower bench or ottoman to give you a place to help put on your shoes and get ready for the day.
Small Home Modifications
An important, easy modification to start with is to make sure that the home is clean and any loose carpeting is taped down or put away if you use a walker or wheelchair. This will not only make the home appear neater, but it will also inevitably reduce the chances of tripping, falling, or rolling over home items that are in the way. Buy some small organization bins that are in easy to reach places to store items that you use often, allowing your home to stay spick and span. Look for lightweight bins in case you are storing them on a shelf so that you’re able to lift them easily.
To make sure you’re at utmost safety in your home, look into installing some easy smart technology, which will make your home more modern as well. Smart lighting is perfect for anyone, especially individuals in a wheelchair who can’t reach a light switch. Simply navigate the settings from anywhere in your home with the use of smart light apps. Also, adding an Alexa or Google Home to your home utilities will be a great asset as you can use your voice to make calls, control your lights, and receive reminders for upcoming events to keep you on track. In case you do need assistance, this will allow you to call out for help with your smart device.
Now that you have a good idea of the range of potential home modifications that will keep your home looking chic and up-to-date, aging in place will be less stressful. Don’t forget– whether large or small modifications- you can keep your home stylish and to your taste.
