Home Is Where the Heart Is: Designing Your Forever Home for Future-Proof Living
We opened the main floor into a single flowing space
Future-proof living is about living well in the place you know best — surrounded by beauty, comfort, and the stories that shape who you are. It’s also about foresight: planning ahead so the spaces you love today can evolve gracefully as life unfolds — whether that means welcoming parents or grandchildren, shifting to hybrid work, exploring new hobbies, enjoying more light and space, or making subtle design choices that ensure comfort and ease even if mobility changes over time.
That foresight matters not only for wellbeing but also for cost. Thinking ahead is especially important when you consider that nursing home care now averages over $90,000 per year in the US and £66,000 per year in the UK. For many, the other alternative might be the significant expense of moving house. By investing in your current home, you can create a space designed to support you through every stage of life.
Rather than waiting for life to demand changes, future-proofing empowers you to shape a home that actively nurtures your wellbeing — a sanctuary designed for comfort, health,
Views of nature lower blood pressure and ease stress
The Role of Nature in Future-Proof Homes
For those looking to future-proof their homes, integrating biophilic design — the thoughtful inclusion of natural elements, patterns, and sensory experiences — can help reduce stress, boost cognitive function, regulate sleep, and promote overall health.
Daylight helps regulate sleep cycles and boost vitamin D. Views of nature lower blood pressure and ease stress. Spaces designed for movement and accessibility encourage independence. Homes that reflect personal history support emotional resilience.
From a warm sunlit corner where you read the morning paper, to a window framing your garden as it changes with the seasons, our surroundings profoundly influence how we feel. Biophilic design taps into this by engaging all the senses—sight, sound, touch, and even scent—through elements such as natural light, fresh air, organic textures, and the subtle movement of light and shadow across a wall.
Sometimes this connection is about expansive views and openness; sometimes it’s about creating small, sheltered places to retreat to. Designers often refer to this balance as prospect (the ability to look out) and refuge (the feeling of protection). While not the whole story of biophilic design, it’s a useful tool for ensuring that a space feels both energising and reassuring.
A treasured art collection woven into the interiors
Designing for Familiarity and Function
One of the great benefits of adapting an existing home rather than moving is the emotional stability it offers. Remaining in a familiar environment preserves long-established community ties, daily rhythms, and the deep comfort that comes from knowing every corner of your space.
In a modest city home we transformed, the owners had lived there for over 20 years before deciding to renovate. Like many today, they divide their time between the office and working from home, so the space needed to feel brighter, more open, and better suited to both professional and personal life.
By opening the main floor into a single flowing space, reversing the staircase to draw sunlight deep into the house, and introducing a walnut screen that plays with changing daylight, we created a home that feels brighter, more spacious, and more connected to the outdoors—ready to adapt gracefully as their lifestyle evolves in the years ahead.
View our Clifton Residence Case Study
Symbiotic Living’s Role in the project: Design Architect in collaboration with Civic Projects.
The staircase was reversed to draw sunlight deep into the house
Balancing Beauty, Memory, and Wellbeing
Balancing Beauty, Memory, and Wellbeing
For some clients, future-proofing means surrounding themselves with pieces that hold deep personal meaning. In this lake side apartment, the owners were balancing a hybrid lifestyle and needed their home to function as a workplace, a sanctuary, and a family hub.
The design supports flexible working between office and home while also anticipating the joy of grandchildren visiting. Their treasured art collection — many works passed down through generations — was woven into the interiors alongside bespoke furniture, a hand-painted mural inspired by a favourite artwork, and the careful positioning of a Harry Bertoia Sonambient sculpture in front of a window framing expansive views of Lake Michigan.
The result is a home that celebrates personal history while remaining ready for the family gatherings that will only grow in importance over time.
Here, biophilic design wasn’t just about nature—it was about creating an environment that sustained the owners emotionally as well as physically.
View our Gold Coast Condo Case Study
Symbiotic Living’s Role in the project: Interior Designer.
A design to support flexible working between office and home
Creating a True Sanctuary
The Oceanfront Residence beautifully showcases our biophilic approach to creating restful, nurturing spaces—especially important when future-proofing a property.
Now empty nesters, the owners wanted a peaceful retreat for themselves that could also flex to accommodate visiting parents and, in the future, grandchildren. The primary bedroom was conceived as a peaceful sanctuary, taking full advantage of its natural surroundings to support restorative sleep and wellbeing.
Bespoke lighting gently mirrors the natural progression of daylight, helping regulate circadian rhythms, while sound-absorbing materials ensure a calm, quiet environment. The use of natural textures and materials, including cedarwood furniture with its soothing aroma, adds a tactile and sensory warmth that fosters relaxation.
Beyond the bedroom, the home’s layout designed by our project partner HEDS Architects, enhances the connection to nature, with living spaces positioned upstairs to maximise light and panoramic ocean views, and private bedrooms tucked away below to offer added privacy and refuge. Thoughtful details like a custom screen filter dappled sunlight, bringing the rhythms of the outdoors inside. This balance of openness and seclusion creates a haven where residents can age comfortably, supported by the subtle, healing presence of nature throughout their home.
View our Oceanfront Residence Case Study
Symbiotic Living’s Role in the project: Interior Designer in collaboration with HEDS Architects
The balance of openness and seclusion creates a haven
Health and Wellbeing Benefits
Future-proofing is about more than remaining at home. It’s about living well in the place you know best, surrounded by beauty, comfort, and the memories that shape who you are.
When biophilic elements are woven into these adaptations—be it through light, views, airflow, natural materials, or textures that echo the patterns of nature—the result is a space that doesn’t just meet needs, but enriches daily life.
At Symbiotic Living, we embed these principles into our future-proofing projects, creating homes that are not only safe and functional but also uplifting and inspiring—whether in the UK or US.