If you are joining two existing families together into one family you may find that most existing homes are not big enough to comfortably house all of the existing family members, and any that may come in the future. Here are some things to keep in mind as you start building. 

Plan ahead

It's generally cheaper to add new rooms and extra facilities such as swimming pools at the construction phase rather than adding them at a later stage. It's a good idea to plan ahead and have enough rooms not just for your family now, but also your future requirements. Imagine what your family will look like 5 or 10 years into the future as you commence building your new home so that you don't have three angry teenagers sharing a room that may have suited them well as toddlers and young children. 

Flexible use spaces

If you have a large family there may not be enough space to have dedicated spaces for study rooms, guest rooms or a home office. You may need to have a flexible approach where you have rooms that work as a play room by day and a home office by night, or a study for most of the year that turns into a guest room when the grandparents visit at Christmas time. New home builders can often integrate useful features such as built in toy chests in bay window seating and murphy beds into the wall to maximise the flexibility within the house design. 

Zoned living areas and bedrooms

If you have family members with different sleep requirements, such as shift workers that need to sleep during the day and young children that rise early, it can be useful to set up the house in different zones so that people who keep to similar schedules can sharing living spaces whilst other people that need peace and quiet can also have that time. Joining two families together will go more smoothly if everyone gets the privacy and sleep time that they need to stay happy. 

If you are looking to join two large families together it can often make sense to get a new home built with a custom design that takes into account the current and future needs of your family. It is generally easier and cheaper to build these features into your home from the beginning than to renovate an existing house. 

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