Member Article

Homes of the Future: Britain’s largest home builder reveals the top design features for new homes in 2021 and beyond

With the last 12 months having a huge impact on the way we live, work and play, Britain’s largest home builder, Barratt Developments Yorkshire has revealed the top design considerations that are likely to be brought into new homes built in the region in 2021 and beyond.

After spending more time at home than we predicted over the past year, the home builder has identified the significance of multifunctional space, access to the outdoors and quality interior design, and how they can improve quality of life and wellbeing. So, as we see out the third national lockdown, Sam Wood, Sales Director from Barratt Developments Yorkshire West has revealed the most popular features that are set to transform new build properties over the next year.

Multifunctional spaces After months of working from home, rooms have had to take on different roles during the typical working day, as many make the best of what they have. Kitchen counters, sofas and even dressing tables have become makeshift office spaces, making it difficult to separate work from home.

As a result, adaptable living spaces, such as a downstairs cloakroom, spare bedroom or even a third storey that can be transformed into a dedicated home office to use during the week, have all surged in demand for new homes. For those homes where spare rooms may not be an option, multifunctional furniture such as wardrobes with built-in desks are now becoming just as popular. Dressed with comfortable furnishings, flooded with natural light and fitted with efficient storage, these spaces can create a much-needed, working-from-home space to help maintain a healthy work-life balance.

Similarly, having a dedicated space to relax when the working day is done is of utmost importance, as the lines between business and pleasure continue to blur. While the importance of personal wellbeing may be nothing new, having access to an en-suite or snug is key in taking some time out to perfect your self-care routine and experience some tranquillity at home.

Bringing the outside in Being forced to adapt to staying at home has given many of us the opportunity to appreciate the smaller things and explore our local areas. Lockdown measures have quite literally kept us grounded this year and this has been reflected in the neutral shades and earthy tones that are finding their way into homes across the UK. These nature inspired colour palettes, borne from lockdown and the environmental and economic impacts that we’ve seen as a result of the pandemic, bring the outside into homes, creating fluidity and a sense of calm as we adjust to ‘the new normal’.

Outdoor hobbies have been a popular pastime during lockdown, making access to green spaces a key consideration for home buyers. French doors leading to fully turfed gardens are a popular choice, giving homeowners the opportunity to spend time in the garden planting, bordering, landscaping and observing nature to continue experiencing the positivity that spending time in nature can radiate. Scientific evidence has also highlighted how birdwatching can help boost mental health and wellbeing. Homeowners have also become more committed to improving their environmental footprint, as bird and bat boxes, hedgehogs highways, ponds and wildflowers are being increasingly seen in back gardens across the country.

Future-proofing In the last 12 months, we’ve noticed just how much of an important role technology plays in our lives. Future-proof, smart homes use systems that will keep your home technologically relevant for years to come and allow you to live in an affordable, eco-friendly way.

Internet reliability has become a vital component for home buyers, but not only as a result of the pandemic. Having the knowledge that data-hungry activities such as video streaming, home-schooling and working from home are able to run smoothly and buffer-free, ensures stress-free living. As the Government aims for 85% of homes to have access to a gigabit broadband connection by 2025, Barratt Developments has partnered with Independent Service Providers to install ultra-reliable gigabit capable broadband as standard across its developments.

Government schemes are encouraging us all to make more environmentally-conscious choices about the way we live, and as the number of electric vehicles on our roads increases, having access to vehicle charging points enables more prospective home buyers to take the steps to living more ethically and sustainably in the years to come.

Getting that community feel With the Office for National Statistics (ONS) finding that nearly half of adults in England (47%) had their well-being affected by the coronavirus pandemic and had experienced feelings of loneliness, anxiety and stress, that all-important sense of community has perhaps become a bigger priority than ever before.

Community spirit has flourished during lockdown, as communities have come together to offer support and solidarity throughout the pandemic, with new groups emerging to help their wider communities. This goodwill is likely to continue even when lockdown eases, with the prospect of a friendly neighbourhood and local area now an even more attractive option for home buyers across the country.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Richard Savage .