A home is one of the paramount locations that give meaning and shape to a person’s day-to-day life. It isn’t just a mere structure that protects you from the cold and houses you for warmth but is in a sense a mirror of a person’s personal views and values. When your home is no longer a fit place for, let’s say, a wheelchair can make people move into rehab centers or permanent care villages. Therefore many people have looked into the idea of a Secondary residence/ Granny flat option but it must comply with disability rules, regulations and most of all the ease of use for the tenant.
More often than not, when you say “home”, the idea of secondary houses doesn’t primarily pop up to mind. But more and more frequently we are getting asked the question: Can secondary residences be built for the disabled? The answer is YES.
Most people believe a Pod is a small item, place or thing, yet in our company, a Pod is up to 90m2 which is bigger than most 2 bedroom apartments being built these days.
Pods can not only be built for an office, investment property, Airbnb rental or extra living space, but it can also be perfect for an individual that wants their own freedom while still being close to support.
Benefits of an accessible Pod:
First:
It can be connected to the existing residence.
Being near to your loved one who needs special attention is the main reason why you need to consider a Secondary Residence.
Second:
Secondary residences are adaptable to life situations change due to illness, injury and age.
The design of our Pod Luxury secondary residences hass 920 doors, ability to control doors, lights & tv through your device and our showers are already pre-bedded so that you don’t need to change it to roll a wheelchair in there with ease. Our top priority is the convenience of our clients but if building with another company please check the small details on the plan very carefully prior to building.
Third:
Knowing your loved one is just a stroll away, you can sleep peacefully. It’s scary when things don’t go as planned and accidents happen. But it can be reassuring that if someone where in a wheelchair or walker and they are close by to check on easily and without breaking their independence.
Fourth:
Design, the physical design of a structure is built upon a specific build for use. For building any home it’s important to consider mobility with dropping the door frames to be flush with the ground, having ramps with specific edging so it’s a complaint and having support beams built internally to support grab rails or an accessible toilet.
Fifth:
The ability to have your home be completely controlled by a device.
For disability use; sliding doors, internal doors, stovetops, security, lights, tv’s and speakers can all be controlled by a device. Usually, it is a tablet or iPad and it’s an important feature for someone with a lack of mobility. A lot of us would struggle in our everyday home if an accident were to occur or our children who may have a disability, so it is so important to modify your home or make it easily adjustable for such situations.
Please read through our rules and regulations blog stating all of the compliance requests we must abide by as it’s really good for our clients to understand what is involved.
Next time you look for a home suited to that of accessible use consider instead investing in, or building a structure that conforms to that of the complexities of their impairments, to truly give meaning to the saying of “ home gives shapes and meaning to a person’s everyday life”.
Find our accessible friendly Pod floor plans on our website. All secondary residence plans are accessible and can be made with minor changes to be 100% wheelchair friendly.
Written in general terms by The Pod Canberra team