No matter your phase in life, you and your family could benefit from a second bedroom suite in your house. This second suite, though perhaps smaller or less appointed than the main suite, accommodates visitors or residents of all ages and varying lengths of stays with you in your home. This redesign may raise the monetary value of your house on the marketplace, should you seek to sell it in the future, and raise the emotional value of your house to you and your family while you’re there.
Consider a basement suite for a growing teen or teens…
What teenager doesn’t seek a little more privacy in their lives? If well-earned, this space can fill the need for greater independence before a teen leaves for college while freeing up space on the main floors.
If the suite is in the basement, there could be easy access to laundry; it’s about time they did their own, isn’t it? It also gives the teen their own bathroom. Get them out of yours or the ones that are shared by guests or younger kids.
A basement suite also is well-suited for your teen’s entertaining needs (with supervision, of course!). Let them have their friends over to gather in the basement to watch movies, play games, or listen to music. We all want to get to know our childrens’ friends better, but that doesn’t necessarily mean having all their friends in the main, shared living areas with every visit.
It’s also perfect for teens with loud or messy hobbies. Apportion some of the space to accommodate their drum sets, their painting studios, their dance practice space. Large closets can house things like sports equipment that might otherwise clutter up your mudroom or entryway.
Perhaps it’s worth investing in a mini-kitchen with a dorm-sized, or slightly bigger, refrigerator, cabinets, and counter space for snacks and drinks for your teen and their friends, so they’re not always raiding the family fridge?
Consider a second suite for adult children with children of their own…
If your children are grown and with children of their own, a second suite is the perfect place to house them when they come home to visit. Like any second suite, this affords your childrens’ families with some privacy, their own bathroom, and possibly access to laundry, which is especially valuable to families with small children.
Not to mention, even the closest of families need alone time– not just your visiting children and their families, but you! Give them their own space to hang out in as a family. Families with small children will appreciate the space during early morning hours when they wish to keep their early-rising young children occupied and from disturbing the rest of the sleeping family.
Like with the teen suite, a small kitchenette area would be a huge benefit to families traveling with young children to visit their parents. A small coffee bar area is perfect for your grown kids.
Consider an in-law suite…
When your parents or in-laws come to visit, wouldn’t it be wonderful to offer them accommodations that feel like home? Whether they’re visiting or staying with your family for the long-term, an in-law suite allows older folks comforts they’ve come to expect while traveling or the amenities they’d expect from home. Private bathroom, sitting area, easy access to laundry, maybe the aforementioned kitchen-ish space?
A ground floor guest suite for in-laws allows for accessibility for people in their golden years and keeps them connected to the family as a whole.
Lastly, consider a double suite for you…
Make any home your forever home by designing a second suite on the ground floor. If or when stairs become unmanageable for one or both of you, you can still comfortably stay in your house, while converting the upstairs suite to a space for guests.
Adding a separate powder room to the first floor main suite redesign, allows for guests to have a bathroom that isn’t already used by the family for their daily use, showering, etc. Add something about how the powder room is always ready for guests and doesn’t have to be decluttered of kids toys to be ready
Double kitchens were the subject of our last blog post, but double suites are likewise growing in popularity. Bigger houses, with room to spare, can be redesigned to add this feature which can greatly improve the comfort, value, and livability of your home.