Kitchen & Bath Business - February/March 2019 - 18

Trends

The Flexible Family Home

A surge in multigenerational households inspires products and designs for all ages

FTER THE RECESSION HIT, many

families began living
together for financial reasons. As the economy recovered, the number of multigenerational households -
consisting of two or more adult generations - have not
decreased as expected. According to the Pew Research
Center, nearly one in five Americans - or 64 million
people - live in a home with multiple generations, and this group includes
all races, genders and ages.
"We have seen multigenerational design growing for years, and I don't see
it going away," said Shari McPeek, advertising and public relations manager
for Rev-A-Shelf. "The reasons could be a mixture of all sorts of things like
culture, the desire for continued independence with the security of proper
care and also hard economics."
INSIDE TODAY'S HOUSEHOLD

A multigenerational home is most likely to include young adults. Some of
the reasons for this include the rising cost of real estate and the increase in
student loan debt.
"Kids are 'boomeranging' back after college or not leaving the nest as
early," said PJ Rosch, senior brand manager for Baldwin Hardware. "Young
people are waiting longer to get married, which makes the need to have a
place of their own less important. Other times kids stay with their parents
to save up to buy their own place."
Older generations - primarily the growing baby boomer population - are
also moving back in with their adult children because of the high expense
of senior care. Instead of choosing to move into an assisted-living facility or
senior community, this generation is finding that living at home is a more
comfortable and fulfilling experience.

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18-22_KBB_0219_Trends.indd 18

ABOVE LEFT Bentley from

CAMBRIA boasts a white
background intersected with
bold, translucent black and
charcoal veins with muted light
gray spatters and cross veins
dispersed throughout. Bentley
is available in the company's
matte finish, which provides a
silky-smooth, low-sheen, nonreflective look that is easier on
the eyes.
ABOVE RIGHT The Zura
Single-Handle Bath faucet
from DELTA FAUCET features
hands-free Touch 2O Technology and the TempSense LED
Light for indicating water
temperature, making it ideal
for universal design projects.
The faucet is available in matte
black, chrome, champagne
bronze, stainless, polished
nickel and a split finish of
matte black and chrome.

BY ERINN LOUCKS

Taking care of elders and grown children is
not a new concept globally. With the increase
of diversity in the U.S., cultures that have always
embraced familial living - like in Asia or Latin
America - are also driving the rate of multigenerational households.
"As our population continues to become more
diverse, the customs of the world to integrate
the generations under one roof will become ever
more mainstream as well," said Julie Schuster
of New York City-based Julie Schuster Design Studio. "And in our need for two-income
families to remain the norm, the care needs of
children can also be handled within the family.
Everyone benefits!"
KID-FRIENDLY SPACES

No matter how many family members are living
together, a badly designed home can be a dangerous place for a child. The most recent accident
statistic report from the National Safety Council
and the National Center for Injury Prevention
and Control states that about 2,000 children ages
14 and under die annually as a result of a home
injury. These unintentional deaths are typically
caused by accidents like falling, choking and poisoning - and can be easily avoided through 
proper design and storage.

Kitchen & Bath Business / FEB.-MARCH 2019 / KBBONLINE.COM / The official publication of KBIS (KBIS.com)

1/23/19 3:27 PM

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Kitchen & Bath Business - February/March 2019

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