For example – do you need a whole room or can you use somewhere that’s part of a room i.e. Where is the best place for the space – Whether you have somewhere in mind as yet, or whether you have a few options, the answers to the other questions will have guided you to the most appropriate space. When will the space be used? It’s no good having an office under the stairs if you have a large family and are needing to use it for conference calls so need the peace and quiet, or having an office in the darkest part of the house with no window when you tend to work better in the mornings with lots of light and fresh air coming in. What will you need to have in the space? Filing, computer, desk, storage, books, printer, chair(s), lighting, drawers, stationery, music, noticeboard etc… -all of this will need to be stored and accessible for when you need it – so you will start to see how big a space you may need. Think about whether the space will be purely for a home based business, or a homework station, or the place for the computer, for crafting, for writing cards and wrapping presents, for dealing with your homes bills, filing etc….
If you are going to be using it at the same time as other people then you may need to have 2 desks and chairs for example. How will the space be used? The answer to this question can be very telling. Who is going to use the space? – Will it be one person who always works from home, or for the whole family? #3 – How? Why is a dedicated home office space required? Do you really need a large room or can you use a smaller area? Getting to the point of why you are even needing to set up a home office in the first place will focus your thoughts. Awesome home office design with bike hanging in the air Design: Bonadies Architect Dashing home office that is all about gray Design: Pacific Peninsula Group Homeowners looking to combine a touch of entertainment along with the home office can also place the television above the fireplace in order to make the most of available space. Questions to ask when setting up a Home Office #1 – Why?