The recent Accessible Housing Options paper brought to light the advantages of including Livable Housing features at the design phase instead of making those changes later one. The cost-benefit analysis makes it clear that including accessible design options when building a home is the obvious choice.
There is a growing demand for homes that can adapt as people’s circumstances change and therefore, by making your home accessible you can increase its value. The key features of a ‘Livable’ home are:
- It should be easy to enter
- Capable of effortless and cost effective adaptation
- Easy to move in and around
- Designed to anticipate and respond to the changing needs of home occupants
If your house already has accessible features, you can talk to your real estate agent about the best ways to promote them when selling. Using keywords like, “liveable” “accessible”, “adaptable” and “modified” will make sure your house is easily found by potential buyers or renters looking for a home for accessible design features. Using photos that show the easy access to your property, where the car park is and any accessible features throughout your house will also help.
Optimal Living can provide comprehensive Livable Housing Assessments and Certifications to Architects, Builders, Home Owners and Councils, through site and desktop audits. As registered assessors we can assign the use of an LHA Silver, Gold or Platinum logo to a design or an as built home based on our assessment which can then market the home as being livable to future home buyers.
