Six Post-Covid Home Must-Haves

by Carlisle Homes

Discover the most popular features in home design that have emerged since the pandemic.

The pandemic has changed the way we live in and use our homes – no longer just a place to escape to at the end of a long day, it’s often where we work, exercise and entertain too. As such, we need different things from our homes, such as flexible layouts, quiet spaces to work, and somewhere to take a breather and connect with nature.

Here, the Carlisle design team reveal the popular features homeowners are asking for today, and how they can help you adapt to the ‘new normal’ of a post-Covid world.

1. Acoustic insulation

A quiet home is a happy home – as so many of us discovered during lockdowns! There’s nothing more annoying than being disturbed by traffic, noisy neighbours or the kids’ games when you’re trying to conduct a Zoom call or in the middle of a nail-biter on TV.

Acoustic insulation is high on the list for many homeowners in 2022, and for good reason; it minimises the transmission of sound through walls and between upper and lower levels in double storey homes by up to 75 per cent, so you can enjoy peace and quiet, whatever may be going on outside. The most important areas to add acoustic insulation are generally your home theatre, study and bedrooms where minimising noise is a priority.

At Carlisle, we offer acoustic insulation to your new home, with products from leading brand CSR Bradford. It’s important to note that acoustic insulation is best worked out during the planning phase of your new home, well before building begins.

2. Multiple living areas

While open-plan living scores top points for fostering a sense of togetherness, if lockdowns taught us anything, it’s the importance of also having somewhere to get away. 

Today, homeowners want multiple living areas that allow for different activities to happen simultaneously, whether it’s entertaining, watching a family movie, or somewhere the children can spend time with their friends or practice their musical instrument without disturbing the rest of the household. 

3. Flexible spaces

Homes today need to multi-task as places where we can work, relax, entertain and exercise, which makes flexibility a priority. Homeowners are looking for ways to get more from the rooms in their home, including multi-use living spaces where the kids can play or study remotely, home offices that double as an extra bedroom when required, and open-plan living rooms with areas that can be screened off to conceal a work-out or meditation zone.

 Pocket-sliding doors, room dividers and screen walls are all great ways you can partition off a space and change its use in an instant.

4. Home office

Once considered a nice bonus, a dedicated workspace where we can work remotely – whether in the form of a home office or a study nook – is now a necessity for many of us.

While you can tuck a little workspace just about anywhere, from a freestanding desk in a bedroom to a built-in alcove in the kitchen or kids’ entertainment area, if you want somewhere quiet where you can concentrate and take calls, nothing compares with a dedicated study with acoustic insulation.

Watch our step-by-step video guide on creating the perfect Nordic-inspired study here.

5. Entertainment area/home theatre

One of the unexpected upsides of lockdowns was the chance to spend time together as a family – and it’s something many homeowners want to encourage within the design of their homes. This, combined with the fact that we couldn’t pop out to the cinema on a whim, has seen home theatres on the rise. 

Choose a home design that includes a dedicated theatre room that you can deck out with comfortable seating and a super-size TV screen to create a cinema experience at home. Consider adding doors to improve acoustic properties  – it means the kids can quietly watch a movie while you’re entertaining, or you can convert the room to an extra bedroom if needed.

6. Indoor-outdoor flow

Covid has seen a growing emphasis on ‘healthy homes’, and the importance of connecting with nature for our wellbeing. Plus, given our fantastic climate, Australians have always had a strong pull towards the outdoors.

So, it’s little surprise to see more demand for indoor-outdoor connection within our homes. Think open-plan living/kitchen/meals areas that flow smoothly onto a terrace or deck, full-height glazing that draws in light and views, and outdoor entertaining rooms with fireplaces, heating and sofa set-ups that double as a year-round extra living space.