Home/Studies/Life-stage townhouse
Worked example

A family home,
planned for 25 years.

A typical four-bedroom townhouse in Dubai, planned once for every stage of family life and reviewed every five years.

This is a study drawn by URU Design on a typical Dubai layout to show how we think. It is not a client commission, and the drawings are illustrative.

The idea

Most homes are designed for one moment.

A family’s needs change roughly every five years: a nursery becomes a teenager’s room, a study becomes a suite for an adult child, and one day the stairs become a problem. Without a plan, each change means another renovation. A life-stage master plan decides in advance how every room will change, and builds the hidden preparations in from the start.

How each room changes use over 25 yearsA matrix of seven spaces in a typical four-bedroom Dubai townhouse across five life stages. Highlighted cells mark a change of use planned in advance.Young childrenYears 1 to 5School yearsYears 6 to 10TeenagersYears 11 to 15Young adultsYears 16 to 20Supportive livingYears 21 to 25Ground-floor roomGuest roomGuest room + homeworkGuest roomHome officeMain bedroom, step-freeFamily livingOpen play + livingLiving + study cornerLiving + teen loungeLivingLiving, clear routesBedroom 2Nursery near parentsChild’s roomTeen roomGuest suiteCarer’s roomBedroom 3Shared playroomChild’s roomTeen room, quieterHobby studioHobby or guestBedroom 4Parents’ studyShared studyQuiet studySuite for adult childFamily visitsFirst-floor mainMain bedroomMain bedroomMain bedroomMain bedroomFamily suiteGardenFenced play lawnPlay + plantingOutdoor majlisKitchen gardenShade + level pathsChange of use, prepared for in the first designNo change
How each space in a typical four-bedroom townhouse changes use across five stages. Highlighted cells are changes the first design prepares for.
Day one

Decisions made now that pay off later.

Decision in the first designPays off in
A ground-floor room with an en-suite bathroom sized for a wheelchair turning circleSupportive living: it becomes the main bedroom without building work
Doors at least 900 mm wide and level thresholds on the ground floorSupportive living, and moving furniture in every stage
Timber backing inside bathroom and stair walls for future grab railsSupportive living: rails fixed in an afternoon, no tiles broken
Bedroom 3 built with acoustic insulation and a second light circuitTeenagers: a quieter room; young adults: a hobby studio
Bedroom 4 plumbed for a future showerYoung adults: a self-contained suite for a returning son or daughter
Garden levels and paths laid out once, planting changed over timeEvery stage: play lawn, majlis, kitchen garden, level shaded walks
The deliverable

What the family receives.

  • A drawing for each of the five stages, showing room use and furniture.
  • A short written plan: what changes, when, what it needs and roughly how disruptive it is.
  • A list of day-one preparations to include in the current renovation.
  • A review every five years, when the plan is updated for how the family actually lives.

The plan is prepared as part of a residential Space Audit. Read more about our human-centric approach.

Book a consultationStart with a Space Audit