We often get asked what is meant by a lifetime home. The answer to the question is not as complicated as it seems. It is a house where you can live for another 25 or 50 years so to speak. One of the most important elements is a bedroom downstairs when looking for a home that is suitable for life. But it should also be possible to install a stairlift. When your mobility is reduced and you still have a bedroom downstairs you still want to be able to provide for yourself. A stair lift is an excellent option for this. It doesn't all have to be there right away. But it is still smart to prepare for it in advance. Because it is quite pricey, many people choose to do something every year.

How to make a home fit for life?

You can make a life cycle home by adapting it to all possible situations. Think for example of a handicap after a car accident. Then you still want to be able to sleep upstairs. There must be room for a stairlift. But you can also think of a chronic illness like COPD or asthma. Here it is important that there is a bedroom downstairs as soon as possible. This is because you are quickly exhausted by these chronic diseases. More and more people are therefore paying attention when buying a house. They have to be able to make it resistant in case of an accident or old age.

What can you improve about your current home?

There are several things you can do to your home to create a home that is fit for life. For instance, do you have an increased risk of falling because of a balance disorder? Then you can choose to have a different floor. Another option would be to place cushions on the floor to protect you from falling. It has everything to do with being able to live at home for as long as possible. A lot of people don't know this but you can do a lot about it. For example, put a brace in the toilet to help you get up. This often doesn't cost that much and you can do this early on. There are also many tools available at the home care shop. So you can already get these in house just in case.

Step-by-step plan for a life-proof home

There are several steps you go down for a lifetime home. You could orient to house without stairs so to speak. After all, if you tire easily or have difficulty walking, a house with stairs is of no use to you. You should also ensure accessible walking routes. It is best to gather as little furniture and stuff as possible to be prepared for the future. When you are older, you can also choose to have an induction cooker. If you leave this one on, it's not as much of a disaster as with gas. The bathroom and toilet could be equipped with brackets to help you get up and sit down. Choose a low maintenance garden. If you ever become disabled, someone else doesn't have to take care of it. As a last option you can also install smart devices in your home.

Example of life-proof home with home automation

There are lifeguarding homes that have smart devices. For example, they detect when they have not seen you move. If this is longer than a day, a signal is sent to family or caregivers. You can also choose to purchase a robot vacuum cleaner. This will relieve you of the heavy task. You also have this kind of equipment for the garden and other spaces. Even as far as mopping the floor. You also have a Google Home speaker. You can use this one for making restaurant reservations. All you have to do is speak to the speaker. But you can also give commands to dim or turn off the lights. And of course you can play your music with it. This is a cheap multifunctional device that everyone can use.

What requirements does the property have to meet?

A home that is suitable for the first stage of life meets various requirements. This is of course different for each person but there is a common thread. Most of these houses are on the ground floor. But it is also possible that you have a house with several floors. Usually there is a shower and bedroom downstairs. But it is also possible that these are upstairs and that a stairlift can be installed. You could also equip the house with so-called smart devices. These can take over tasks in the house like vacuuming and mopping. But you can also use them to order food or book a restaurant. In addition, you could also use motion detectors. These detectors see immediately when you have not moved for a long time. The detector then sends a signal to your family or caregivers. You can always call the home care shop for advice on materials. They have already done this on a regular basis.

How did the term life cycle home originate?

The term life cycle home was coined by Humanitas in the 1990s. The exact meaning is that a house must be suitable for the future. A goal is to be able to continue living at home for as long as possible. It has become a true concept which was also placed in the dictionary about 15 years ago. So everyone knows what you mean by this. You could also see it as resistant. With this we mean that the house is built so that you can grow old in it. This can be because of the spacious spaces but you can also make this with smart appliances. There are several ways to prepare for the future. Always look at the possibilities and not the impossibilities.

Detached house for life

Today, many detached houses for life are being built. These are often also made in a sustainable way. Often they are energy efficient and therefore have a good energy label. There are even homes that have a BENG certificate. BENG stands for Nearly Energy Neutral Building and this is the future of the Netherlands. Often people think about the recovery of water and energy. This may be through good insulation but also by a heat pump. Solar panels on the roof could also contribute to this. The advantage of a detached house is that you have a lot of space. This ensures that as you get older you will have spacious walkways. In addition, most homes are stable in value. This means that you can suffer little to no loss when you want to sell it.

Making a home suitable for the elderly

You can see in a simple way how you can make a life-size home yourself. You can do this for example by measuring rooms in the house. You can often see at a glance what the possibilities are. Take the stairs for example, you can see right away if they are suitable for a stairlift. The same goes for a toilet and bathroom. You can immediately see if the room is suitable for a brace and a chair. Smart home automation can be placed in all homes. Often, they come in compact versions that you can place anywhere. But always pay attention to the garden during the purchase of the house. When it is large, it also means that it needs a lot of maintenance. The home care shop in your area can advise you. They have done this before. You will get good advice there.

Tips on how to do this cheaply

It doesn't have to be expensive to develop a home that is suitable for life. You can often do this with the smallest adjustments. You can buy good and solid brackets from as little as 20 euros. But also the smart home automation you can buy in that price range. It is often the case that if you spread the purchase over the years, it will be easier. But you can also do a lot of work yourself. A lot of people can do the paving of the garden themselves. In addition, you can also choose to hang the brackets etc. yourself. This can save a lot of money. You can also save money by buying things second hand. You only have to pay attention to the way the products work. Eventually you could ask for the receipt for the remaining warranty. There are also more and more second hand items in the homecare shop. Here you do get warranty on!

Life-cycle home for seniors

Especially for seniors, it is important to have a home that is suitable for all stages of life. They need to have all the comforts of home. You can choose to replace your gas cooker with an induction cooker. This is much safer when people are forgetful. But you can also install smart home automation. These register, for example, when the senior citizen has not moved for a while. You then get a push notification on your phone. You could also share this with caregivers. Regular visits to friends and family can often help you live longer at home. But it is also a big stick when you get older. They can often help and support you to live at home for as long as possible. Then you will not be put away in a life-proof new home.

What are the costs of a home designed to last a lifetime?

A home that is suitable for life is not necessarily expensive. You can make it as expensive and as good as you want. It also depends on the things you have done or are doing yourself. Often companies charge an hourly rate of 60 to 80 euros per hour. This makes it an expensive joke to hang a brace, so to speak. However, it is useful to have a stairlift installed by someone else. They know exactly how to do it and you don't want to break such an expensive device. These are all choices that you will have to make yourself. But in most cases you have at least 10 years to make all these adjustments. Always make sure you are prepared for the things that can still happen.

Why this is so important

It's important to have a life-sustaining home because things can always go downhill. This can be due to a hereditary or chronic disease. But it can also happen, for example, due to a car accident. During this intense period it is necessary to act quickly. So it is nice to have people around who can do this. It is also convenient if you have all the materials in house. But since you often don't have everything at home, they can also do this for you. You could also call the home care shop to see what is possible through your health insurance. This will make sure that you do not make any unnecessary costs. Rehabilitation already demands a lot of time and money from you so you can use this.

The process of a life cycle home

Most people make their home life-course resistant over the years. They do this by making small adjustments to the home. Are you at an older age and do you have trouble standing up from the toilet? No problem, you can get brackets for this at the hardware store or any other store. This is usually installed the same day if there is someone in the neighborhood who can do this. But also a stairlift can be delivered quickly nowadays. There has recently been a second-hand market for these. These models have all been checked by the supplier. This can save you a lot of money. However, if your health insurance covers it, we recommend that you buy a new one. This will also last longer.

Summary

Creating a home for the elderly is not difficult. Do you have few family or friends around? Then there are also several life-proof homes in the new construction. One of the advantages is that these are delivered ready for use. You don't have to do anything and you are provided with all comforts. If you prefer to stay on your own but you are forgetful then you can choose smart locks. These open themselves on bluetooth or with a code. But you can also replace your gas cooker with an induction cooker. So nobody is in unnecessary danger.