Key Highlights
- Post COVID-19 homes could look and be constructed differently
- New definitions of “home” could be based upon health, technology and socialization
- Developers and designers re-evaluating current aesthetics and amenities
The COVID-19 pandemic has upended everything. Where people want to live post-COVID may be very different than where people live now. How and what people want from and in their living spaces post-COVID may be very different than how and what people want from and in their living spaces now.
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Knowing that most new developments take several years to become reality, Edgardo Defortuna, founder and CEO of Miami- headquartered Fortune International Group, said, “We’re not designing for tomorrow; we are designing for three years from now. We need to be very careful on what is appreciated today versus what will continue to be appreciated in the future.”
Here are several ideas about “home is home” floating around in the minds of some of the world’s most prominent developers and designers:
- Scott Gillen, owner of the development firm UnvarnishedCo based in Malibu, is adding “freezers in the garage and much more storage for dry goods, whether that be more first-aid kits or masks or medical supplies.”
- Defortuna believes that developments will become smaller, boutique-sized buildings of 40-60 larger individual units with more square footage to accommodate work, children, socialization and private elevators as opposed to today’s developments with hundreds of residences.
- Roderick Anderson, CEO and design director of the Costa Rica-based SARCO Architects, thinks that new homes may call for air and water purification systems to minimize viral contamination, generous kitchen spaces and home offices that will all require a deeper integration of technology into daily life. Smart homes may likely become smarter with keyless phone controlled systems, voice-enabled and face-recognizing applications that control appliances, video-conferencing and package delivery schedules.
- Mark Mantione, CEO North America of the German interior design company Metrica, said, “You’re going to see closed-pore wood finishes…and more metal finishes that have low microbe growth…” in both shared spaces and individual homes.
- “Amenity spaces will be fundamentally altered, encouraging more elbow room, said Dan Kodsi, developer of PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter. Gyms could spread out and have disparate types of equipment for semi-private workout sessions instead of clustering same machines together. Balconies and private parks could become in-demand perks so people could distance in the open air and feel less fear of infection.
More and more, developers and designers will be thinking about ways to integrate post COVID concerns of health and material safety, work efficiency, technology and age appropriate amenities under one roof.
Thanks to MansionGlobal’s Dima Williams.
Also read: New American Dream? Home Renter-ship?, Six Must-Haves to Seduce High-End Buyers, “Scattershot Re-openings” Still Leading to 2.9M More Layoffs
