If you’re like us, building from scratch is the way – new builds ensure that the home you move into is specifically customized for you and your family.

It also makes it much easier to design the home to be perfect for you 30 years from now as well as today.

Lots of details go into designing a home for aging in place, beginning with the floor plan. Certain layouts are easier to navigate as we get into our golden years. 

On that note, here are some of the best floor plans for aging in place:

Single-Story Layout For Aging in Place

This isn’t to say you should not build a second story on your home – far from it. But ensuring that there is a primary suite on the ground floor (even if you plan for it as a secondary suite for the next decade or two) goes a long way to ensuring your home is one where you can age in place. 

So while you don’t need your home to be a single-level, ranch style home, you do want to have everything you need on that ground level. 

Additionally, you want to make sure there are few or no steps when entering the home. For example, it’s common to have to take a step down when entering from the front door, going into the Florida room or from the garage into the home.

To the front door it’s pretty straightforward to avoid putting in stairs: we can design a nice sloped entrance to avoid a few steps. For the garage and Florida room, we can make it so it is easy to retrofit a ramp at a later date (if you don’t want it now) by designing space in front of the stairs to put in a ramp without impacting the space in the garage and Florida room.

 Additionally (at least for the primary suite on the groundfloor), go for a zero-entry shower in the bathroom. This allows you to enter the shower without having to step over anything, reducing the risk of a fall. 

Open Floor Plan For Aging in Place

Open floor plans remove barriers between key areas like the kitchen and living room. The lack of doorways, turns, and long distances between spaces makes the home easier to navigate. You can even move around freely with mobility aids like wheelchairs or walkers. 

Another benefit of open floor plans is the enhanced visibility throughout the entire floor. This can be very important for supervision purposes, either from your spouse or a caregiver. 

L-Shaped Layout

If you value privacy over transparency, an L-shaped layout creates separation between public and private spaces. Many seniors prefer to have their living area and kitchen on one side of the layout, and their bedroom, bathroom and study on the other. This allows them to get all the peace and quiet they need while their spouse or their guests socialize or watch television. 

Additionally, an L-shaped layout provides easy visibility from one side of the home to the other. On that note, it’s important to keep the corridors wide in order to accommodate walkers and wheelchairs. 

This layout can also be designed to minimize distance between essential areas. For example, putting the garage right next to the kitchen and butler’s pantry so you don’t have to walk too far while transporting groceries or supplies from the one to the other is simply smart design.

Any Floor Plan Can Still Be Stylish 

Are you ready to design a home that prioritizes your happiness as well as your health? If so, the Debowsky Design Group can help. We sincerely believe that a home that’s designed for aging in place doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice aesthetics. 

Get in touch and we can start designing your forever home.