COVID's Affect on Housing Design Trends

The Wall Street Journal recently published an article titled, "Tik Tok Studios, Zoom Rooms and Co-Working Spaces are the New Must Have Home Amenities". As a work at home real estate professional, with a husband who now works at home, a high school student who's school is hybrid, and a sophomore in college returning home soon, I must admit I was drawn to the article. What on earth were home builders doing to homes to encompass all that we COVID individuals needed, and how would these homes look?

Simply put, contractors are quickly re-drawing floor plans of the homes they are building or renovating to include more user friendly spaces for professionals now working at home. Instead of having home theaters or bowling allies, professional families are replacing these rooms to fit their new work at home needs. These reimagined homes have sound proof rooms, are professionally wired, are attractively lit, and have professional grade cameras and microphones. It is important for some professionals, especially tv personalities to look good on their Zoom calls and equally important not to have the calls glitch or drop, therefore having a home that is professionally wired is more important than ever. Homes also need to have space for co-working environments with both parents and even children working inside their home 24/7.

While my husband and I don't have the need for perfectly lit spaces, a "must have" for our home became abundantly clear when the 4 of us were all working or doing school work at home. There were constant groans in our home this past spring when classes dropped, business presentations froze, or noise from our very well loved, yet sometimes barking dog blasted throughout the house. We needed to fix the issues in our home and quickly.

Savvy contractors and real estate agents are staying ahead of the game by updating their homes, or are at the very least showing how such designs could be easily imagined in their homes.

For more information, the link to the Wall Street Journal article is attached.