With all the media attention focused on the financial chaos of
the housing industry, technology is emerging as an even more
powerful force of change. More and more home buyers are placing
emphasis on technology, or lack thereof, in the process of buying
their new home. This is causing a surge in demand for technologies
that are changing the way we have looked at homes for generations,
all 
driven by an increasingly educated home buyer that’s
looking toward the future for efficient new products and
solutions.
Industry experts, corporations, and consumers are all pointing
to the same trend within the housing industry: the home is no
longer looked at as mere bricks and mortar, but rather as a
technological platform with the capability to adapt. Technology is
seen as a means to carry the concept of an affordable and liveable
private home into the 21st century, a concept now under attack.
Homes, followed by cars, represent the single biggest investment
for the average American. They also consume the most resources,
causing the biggest pain to our wallets. They are also a place
where we spend a significant amount of time, perhaps our most
important resource of all. There is no doubt that the home
represents a major part of our lives, both economically and in
terms of quality of life.
Despite some advances the home has been slow to change hundreds
of years. Studies have shown that the housing industry has been the
least innovative of our major industries despite its size. Most
people realize this is unsustainable, given the problems facing the
world today. In response consumers are creating an insatiable
demand for technology within the home. (cont.)
Now more than ever consumers are swarming to technology portals
to find out more about technology integration and the home. A
growing awareness of technology has produced a dynamic shift in
understanding. Consumers are interested in the concept of a
networked home, a platform in which many of the homes functions are
automated. In recent surveys over 80% of respondents would put a
home network system in their home. The benefits of convergence are
enormous when discussing the home as a technology platform,
especially when discussing energy efficiency. According to JD Power
and Associates, over 98% of new home buyers expect builder to
incorporate energy saving features. The home is also being looked
at as a self sustaining entity, a structure that produces its own
energy and is less dependent on the grid. These concepts are all
pointing to a period of dramatic and sustained change.
In response to these trends the concept of “future proofing” has
emerged as a major focus of home buyers, a way to ensure the
viability of the home. It also means avoiding homes with dated
systems and design, and the increasing awareness of what is
obsolete and no longer acceptable. Starting out as a trend within
high-end homes, it has since become a more common trend with the
average home buyer as well. The concept basically buying a home
that incorporates features that will improve and maintain its value
in the future, both in terms of economics and quality of life.
Health, safety, connectivity, and efficiency are all powerful
drivers that are driving consumer interest. It also means avoiding
homes that are lacking key technological advancements. Below are a
list of areas of the home where the concept of future proofing and
awareness is the most apparent.
1. Home networking and automation- Future proofing a home could
not be accomplished without planning for electronic devices and
systems in the future. Essentially in the construction phase this
means pre-wiring a home to allow for the integration of future
components. Structured wiring is a concept coined by building
professionals to describe a type of prewiring that allows for the
adding of electrical components at a later date. Systems such as
data networks, motorized windows, lighting, climate control, and
telephone and intercom systems are all subsystems that can be added
in a home as it evovles. This also provides the infrastructure for
the automated home, one of the most valid types of future proofing.
Going beyond a mere platform for lighting, entertainment, and
security, the automated home can respond to changes in the
environment without intervention by the homeowner. A key example is
a home that cleans itself, or automatically communicates with the
electrical grid to adjust energy consumption during peak demand.
With central control a homeowner could control this automated
network from within the home or without. Portals could allow you to
tap into your homes network and check on security as an
example.
2. Energy efficiency and the use of renewables- With the cost of
energy rising, curbing home energy consumption is a key way to
future proof the home. Systems that afford not just a higher level
of efficiency, but make the home a net producer of power instead of
a net consumer will become increasingly popular. According to a
recent survey by Sharp Electronics, 8 out of 10 homebuyers want
solar power to be an option in the purchase of their new home.
Products and innovation from small companies are exploding onto the
marketplace and becoming more reliable. Alternative forms of energy
such as wind are also becoming more prominent in residential
housing, as governments increase subsidies for their
implementation.
3. Adaptable home design-Lifestyles are changing, and a home
that can accomodate more and more gadgets, as well as generational
differences, will serve us well into the future. Space management
allows a home to utilize the available space more effectively, and
to accomodate multiple uses for rooms throughout the house.
Flexible wall spaces can be integrated to pattern after changing
uses in the home. Also design must incorporate the fact that many
more people are aging in place, and will need a home designed
around their infirmity before that comes to pass. Essentially
future proof design seeks to be adaptable.
4. Eco-friendly homes that have been built with the future in
mind will make sound use of scarce resources and implement recycled
materials. They will limit their carbon footprint and be designed
to make as little impact on the environment as possible. Many homes
of the future may be completely “off the grid” (a term that will
become increasinly more prevalent), even storing and filtering
their own water supplies for various uses. This perspective of the
home as an ecological entity intertwined with the environment will
become increasingly prevalent. With the chaotic behavior of world
energy markets and the high cost of public infrastructure, future
homes will be less dependant on centralized systems to provide them
with various needs, striving for self sufficiency.
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