Checklist for a Perfect Home Office Remodel

Whether you work from home full-time, own your own business, or simply need a designated, organized place to pay the bills and keep your household moving, you’d love to create the perfect home office. Anyone can slap together a banged up a metal desk, a folding chair, and a stained coffee mug and call it an office. But if you’re planning to spend regular time in your home office space, you need it to be both functional and appealing. Here’s how:

1) Prioritize the Work Surface in Your Home Office

Choose your desk, table, or other work surface based on the actual activities you’ll be doing in your home office. You might also want to include a large desktop if your kids will be using the space for school projects or if your work involves needing to spread out paperwork across the desktop. Work exclusively on the computer or just need to pay bills and write thank-you notes? Keep your horizontal space to a minimum to save floor space.

2) Strategize Your Storage Solution

Make sure you know exactly what you need to store and have a solid organization system in mind before you decide on storage solutions. Your home office remodel might include adding built-in shelving, creating closet space, or maximizing the storage space you already have. My own home office became much more functional once I took off the standard closet doors, added wire shelving, and mounted curtains in front for easy opening.

3) Balance Your Home Office Seating Options

You might not need to spend $2,000 on a top-of-the-line, ergonomically miraculous home office chair. But don’t spend $30 at Walmart and call it a day, either. Sitting for extended periods of time in a badly designed chair can cause all kinds of physical problems, so do your best to balance cost with quality.

4) Provide Plenty of Light

Hopefully, your home office includes a window so you have natural lighting and can look to the world outside from time-to-time throughout the day. In any case, include good overhead lighting in your home office remodel plans—whether recessed, pendant, or even a ceiling fan. Then supplement your overhead lighting with task lighting near your workspace. If possible, mount the task lighting on the wall to leave desk space available for other tasks.

Whether your home office ends up in the corner of your bedroom or in a room of its own, make sure that the space also incorporates your personality and a few cherished items—obviously photos and drawings from the kids but also a pretty candle in your favorite color or a soft throw with your college logo. Making the space your own will encourage you to spend more time in the space!