If you’re building a custom home, the last thing you want to do is to grow out of it within a few years. When designing your custom home, there are a few key things to consider so that your dream home can be your forever home:

Many new build homes have open concept layouts these days and for good reason. They’re practical and easy to navigate and will continue to be as you get older. Open concept kitchens and other living spaces provide you with plenty of room for moving around, can be wheelchair accessible, and can allow multiple people to be cooking, washing dishes and spending time in your living spaces.

As you get older, you may begin to experience reduced mobility, and stairs may become challenging. For this reason it’s important to consider stairs during the design of your custom home. You can still have a second floor to your home, but you may want to consider having an office or den that you’d be able to convert into a master bedroom, if necessary.

3. Accessibility

In addition to the layout of living areas and stairs, you should also consider the accessibility of the rest of your home. Will you be able to adapt your bathroom to be accessible if walking becomes an issue for you? Can your entryway accommodate a wheelchair, or are there too many stairs leading to your front door? Will you be able to use your backyard, deck or patio if your mobility becomes limited? Thinking about these things in the design phase, and considering whether they can be adapted easily in the future, is important if you want your home to grow with you.

4. Timeless design

Design trends can be a guide for helping you choose certain features of your home, but you don’t want to fill your home with fads that are going to look dated within five years. Opt for classic and timeless design features, especially in the more expensive areas of the home that aren’t as easy to replace on a whim.

5. Future needs

Your life may change significantly over the course of your time in your home. While you can’t know for sure what your life will look like in 10 or 20 years, you can plan for certain scenarios. If you are single or married without children, consider whether you’ll need more space as your family grows. In the meantime, extra bedrooms can act as guest rooms, hobby rooms or office space.

6. Location

It’s not just your home that needs to grow with you, but the location as well. If you have children or are planning to start a family, you’ll want to choose a neighborhood with good schools nearby. You may also want to think about proximity to grocery stores, hospitals, doctors and other services that you may come to rely on more as you get older.