Remodeling is HOT Because of Aging Population

According to Abbe Will, a research analyst for Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, the aging society and inaccessible housing stock is suggesting the growing need for remodeling. “Over the coming decades, the number and share of U.S. households age 65 and over will rise dramatically as the oldest members of the baby-boom generation reach retirement age,” she says. With increasing age comes disability and “problems using components of the home without assistance.”

Or just ask AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker, PhD, Hon. AIA. “An increase in home square footage with the rising popularity of accessible design concepts points to a population that is preparing to age-in-place,” he says, “or, perhaps, is anticipating responsibility for caretaking of older relatives in the future.”

That’s opportunity knocking for designers and remodelers! Will also says the majority of older households continue to plan to “age in place.” You can read about some of the statistics in her article,”Aging Society and Inaccessible Housing Stock Suggest Growing Need for Remodeling,” and you can use these statistics in your proposals for your prospects, especially if you are an interior designer pitching a remodeler!

For example, one of the charts shows the demand for accessible homes by older adults is projected to outstrip the supply – especially in the Midwest and Northeast, so if you live in those areas, that’s an important fact to present to your remodeler prospects! Accessibility doesn’t just mean “entering” or “leaving” the home, but moving around it easily.

It’s a new way of thinking about what you do, but it is targeting your market’s needs with what you do best: design. You can also access the AIA’s  AIA HOME DESIGN TRENDS SURVEY directly for yourself to pull additional charts for your presentations.