Creating a home office without remodeling 

You’ve probably spent more time at home this year than ever before, and if that includes working from home, or kids studying along with that, you may be wishing that you could go for a total remodel to reconfigure your space to create more room for everyone. Remodeling is a great goal, but if you aren’t quite ready for the big investment of an add-on, there are some DIY home improvements that can make a big difference.

The real estate experts at HomeLight surveyed top agents to see what kinds of upgrades homeowners are finding the most useful to create a home office without a major remodel. From built-in desks to partitioned off study areas, here are some ideas to make everyone more comfortable working or studying at home.

Bedroom office/classroom transformation

You have an extra bedroom that is usually for guests, but without many guests lately, you’ve targeted this room as your next home office. You can give the space a double identity of a home workspace, and still keep its role as a bedroom for your family, or a guest room. HomeLight’s survey found that 45% of parents are turning spare bedrooms or playrooms into homeschool spaces, and 14% noted the addition of built-in desks and school supply storage in an extra room. If we are talking about a guest room, forget the full-size bed, and swap it out for a sofa bed, trundle, or even a loft bed. Guest rooms are especially great candidates to remove closet doors and use a folding desk in a closet, and add cabinets and drawers to create an organized workspace—you’ll want to add a desk or floor lamp to make sure the space has enough light.

Workspace nook

If you don’t have an extra room, you can create a workspace nook — if your space is really small this can be as simple as adding a desk that can fold away into a cabinet, or roll away into a closet. This workspace nook can pop up anywhere in your home: A wall desk in a kitchen, dining room, master bedroom, or living room corner.

You can also create a separate space with a partition or wall divider. If you have a closet that is filled with clutter, empty it out and convert it into a built-in office: But once again, be sure you add lighting for the best focus while working.

So what about lighting?

While it’s true that you could add a home workspace anywhere, you can only do it well if you think about lighting. Natural light is best, but it’s not a total deal breaker, you can go with overhead lighting, but to make your upgrade is as simple as possible, go with a desk lamp or floor lighting. A desk lamp may be best if you need to conceal it or move the workspace at the end of the day. How the workspace looks on video, and avoiding glare is also something to consider if you find yourself in a lot of online meetings.

We’ve all already had a lot of changes to embrace in 2020. Instead of turning your home upside-down by going through a full remodel, you can go for these simpler upgrades to enhance how your family studies and works at home.