Remodeling to fit your aging needs

For many elder Americans, growing older often means uncomfortable changes in the ability to do day-to-day tasks and even basic mobility. One aspect of aging that millions of seniors are clear on is that they do not want to move out of familiar surroundings and into a nursing home.

One alternative that is becoming increasingly more popular is to adapt the home to make it more user-friendly as we age. There are now even experts in the aging-in-place concept who can assist in these modifications.

The National Association of Home Builders, one of the largest organizations for contractors, engineers and home designers, offers a certification for licensed builders who want to concentrate and expand their skills for the aging population.

The Certified Aging-in-Place (CAPS) designation is earned after a three-day workshop, with testing each day, and must be maintained with regular continuing education. More than 170 such workshops were offered by the NAHB in 2012 to nearly 2,000 people. The 5,000th certification was awarded to an Ohio builder last March.

The first day of training starts with several sensitivity exercises, explains Theresa Crahan, NAHB executive director for remodelers. Students are asked to wear sunglasses smeared with Vaseline, to simulate aging eyesight. They are told to sit in a wheelchair and then maneuver in and out of rooms, opening and closing doors.

Perhaps the most telling exercise, Crahan notes, is when students are told to place a tennis ball in their non-handwriting hand, cover it with a sock and then write a check -- to simulate arthritis. "That's an aha moment" for many, she says.

Occupational therapists often are involved when an older person transits from the hospital or rehab center to home, so many take the course to be better informed, Crahan says.

"The majority of people age 55 and older say they want to remain in their homes for as long as possible," according to Joseph Irons, chair of the CAPS board of governors. "We want to help consumers make their homes their homes for a lifetime," he said, "even when their needs and abilities change."

Glenn J. Gullo, who has been a general contractor for a dozen years, says his Tampa, Fla.-based company, Home Safe, focuses almost full-time on remodeling homes, townhouses and condos for aging consumers and customers with disabilities.

"That's our core business," he says.

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Remodeling to fit your aging needs