How houses should be after COVID-19: more comfortable, safer and healthier

The coronavirus pandemic will change the way we relate to each other, not just in Portugal but across the world, but also the way we live, according to experts. The Houzz online home design and renovation platform has come up with some tips on how to better organise your home for the future with more versatile spaces, how to be prepared for teleworking, creating spaces with more light and contact with the outside, or simply being more comfortable.

Confinement has caught many families off guard, and the truth is that so much time at home has already made many people reflect on shared space and its limitations. Houzz has looked at "most searched terms" by its "community of millions of individuals", then consulted "industry professionals to better understand how this pandemic came to redesign homes from the beginning of the confinement" and how it is expected to evolve from now on. Based on this, the home improvement experts have outlined some characteristics of what houses could and should be like in the future.

Versatile and multifunctional spaces

Houzz/Carla Capdevila

When all family activities are performed in the same space, from work to sports, versatility makes much more sense. Gonzalo Pardo, director of Gon Architects at Houzz, guarantees that "the greatest impact we will feel will be in the inclusion of more spaces enabled for teleworking, from specific rooms to reconfigurable rooms, depending on the time of day". In fact, the words "home office", "desk" and "office" were some of the most searched terms on the Houzz platform in March.

A greater indoor-outdoor relationship

Houzz/Cristina Candel

Outdoor spaces will be more important and more in line with the interior of the house. For Javier San Juan, founder of the lado blanco arquitecturas studio, "terraces, attics or covered patios will be designed in continuity with adjacent areas, forming indoor-outdoor rooms, such as rooms with private patios.

On the other hand, the roofs of buildings will also become more important, especially for all houses that are in the older districts of big cities, where the width of the streets makes it impossible to guarantee several hours of daily sunshine and where it will be necessary to use the roofs to create outdoor spaces.

Healthier houses

Houzz/María Mira Fotografía

Increasing germ prevention before entering the home will be one of the new features to consider in homes. "Houses should be designed with a previous space where residents can take off their shoes as soon as they enter, without the need for large spaces, because they can be adapted to the size of the house," says Moisés Royo, founder of Muka Arquitectura.

In addition to new spaces, technology can increase security and prevent infection, with which we will see new applications for the home emerge. "In the coming years, we'll see doors with facial recognition and voice control in lifts that will prevent us from using buttons," Royo says.

Divisions in bathrooms

Houzz/Jordi Folch

In Royo's opinion "the sink, toilet, shower and bath may become separate and occupy different parts of the house", because, according to the specialist, physically separating these elements is more hygienic and a distinction is made between the most functional pieces and those more focused on well-being and relaxation.

Houses that make us feel good

Houzz/Alfredo Arias

In short, being comfortable at home will be something essential when designing spaces. Pardo from Gon Architects believes that domestic spaces "should be more fun, leisurely and hedonistic to keep as many family members entertained as possible".