Working from home could be great—with these new features

“People really want to enjoy their life as they’re working, and be able to have that mix of both," says Manny Varas, founder and CEO of MV Group, a luxury real-estate developer in Florida.

Around a quarter of total American workdays happened off-site in 2023, according to recent studies. While that is down from more than 60% during the pandemic lockdowns in 2020, many expect working from home to become a permanent practice as hybrid models take root.

The spaces will shift, becoming more dynamic, more personal, more suited to collaboration—and better-looking, designers, architects and product planners say. Here are some of the changes in store for your future home office.

Flexible spaces

The home office will no longer be relegated to a single location—basement, closet or attic—but instead will infiltrate multiple places throughout the house. “People want more than one office or dedicated space for working," says Lisa McClelland, the Philadelphia-based senior vice president of design studios for luxury home-developer Toll Brothers.

Flexibility is key, says Joseph DiNapoli, co-founding principal of Study Architects in San Francisco, which specializes in single-family home construction for the Bay Area’s tech titans. A CEO’s home theater could double as a meeting space or room for video calls. A covered outdoor area could function as an al-fresco office. Interior designs will include “a lot of spaces that have a comfortable chair that someone can just pull up in and spend an hour or two reading emails or taking a Zoom call," DiNapoli says.

Making the office concept work in multiple places requires well-thought-out infrastructure: Wi-Fi that can reach outside. Flattering lighting for meetings on camera. Soft wall coverings or upholstered furniture that damp noise, and fans that operate silently. Plus, furniture will need to multitask.

“We’re looking at things like, how do we deal with storage, how do we deal with power access, how do we deal with it in ways that make it easier for people to quickly transition from one activity to another?" says Joseph White, director of design strategy for upscale furniture company MillerKnoll. Lightweight occasional tables that can be used for a laptop or a drink are one flexible option that he suggests: “They say, ‘pick me up.’"

Residential co-working

Even with the rise of hybrid work, the need to sometimes collaborate in person has prompted a move toward residential co-working. For some that means creating spaces within a large estate. For others, it’s new facilities designed in apartment buildings.

A client of DiNapoli’s, whose Silicon Valley tech company is fully remote, uses his media room to gather team members who live nearby. A client of Varas’s bought the house next door to use as an office.

In some cases, suites originally intended for an elderly family member or adult child are being repurposed as semipublic home offices. “If they need to host someone for a business meeting, it can almost be too personal to have them in your home," says Bradley Nelson, chief marketing officer for Sotheby’s International Realty, who spearheaded a recent luxury housing trend forecast. “These spaces are often immediately adjacent to an entrance, so someone can come in without having to enter the other private family areas."

In multiunit buildings, spaces for co-working are increasingly taking over public areas. At a condo project in Miami, Varas is redesigning around 40,000 square feet of space that had previously been used for lobbies, gaming and other common areas, and giving the majority over to co-working. Residents can use pods set up throughout the common areas or work collaboratively in larger communal areas, he says.

Such spaces can have different vibes and uses depending on their design, says White of MillerKnoll: “Are they completely insular for the residents of those buildings, or are they more open to the surrounding community and neighborhood?"

Local regulations can limit co-working concepts. But some predict more flexibility is coming. “I think zoning is going to catch up to the trend and change with regard to allowing for office use," Varas says.

Prioritized wellness

Working from home often offers increased access to fresh air and natural light, as well as extra time—saved from commuting—for exercise. Forthcoming home-office designs are adding even more features aimed at healthful living.

“Wellness and well-being is not something you can compartmentalize. It has to be pervasive," says White.

Varas and DiNapoli say their clients have requested home-wide air purification systems, sun-tracking skylights, Wi-Fi-enabled meditation gardens, minifridges for hydration and healthful beverages, and desks with ab balls or treadmills instead of chairs. “I can imagine our client spending a lot of time sitting in that lounge space looking at their computer, reading emails, dealing with their daily lives," says DiNapoli of a CEO’s home gym and spa.

“Fitness at home is a growing trend, but it has expanded to include a focus on overall wellness," says McClelland of Toll Brothers. “This could be a meditation room or a yoga studio. Or bathrooms that are transformed into spalike retreats with shower systems, soaking tubs, and calming color schemes."

Virtual views, with purpose

For video meetings, people will offer intentional glimpses into their lives. Workspace designs will incorporate video-ready sightlines—or “corridors"—that give views of decor or scenery reflecting the user’s identity or personality, says Nelson of Sotheby’s International Realty. At the same time, he says, care will be taken that “it’s not too intimate or private."

Such boundaries are individual, and must also factor in work relationships, White says. “My background will vary when I’m meeting with my most direct and intimate co-workers, versus those that are outside of the organization," he says.

In his home office, White uses a black Eames folding plywood screen. During formal presentations, he can position the screen close behind him. “It’s a dramatic, quite theatrical backdrop, like a curtain," he says. With more familiar colleagues, he can move the screen farther back to reveal more of the bookcase beside him. “And those are just two controlled views of the room that I’m sitting in," he says.

Personalizing home office spaces may hold special appeal for workers atop the corporate ladder. “Many executives have been kicked out of their large offices, encouraged to abdicate and hot-desk on the floor," says Omar Nobil, creative director for home-furnishings retailer Design Within Reach. “The home office is a space they actually get to control."

Home vibe, office utility

During the pandemic, many people bought office furnishings for their homes, creating a functional aesthetic. With hybrid work becoming more permanent, people will want workspaces that look and feel homey, while still incorporating the ergonomic benefits of traditional office furniture, designers say.

For one client, DiNapoli’s company is building a custom desk that has the look of a dining table but is fitted with cable management and storage features.

MillerKnoll, which produces many office classics, is working on chairs that look less industrial, White says. It is also offering more color, material and finish options, to better harmonize with other home furnishings. These pieces can “present not as a machine for sitting, but a symbol of your life," White says.

Versatility is a big priority for furnishings. “Different parts of the home will mean something different to different occupants in the room throughout the day," White says. “So, a lot of it comes down to storage, mobility, and those features that allow furniture to change shape and change purpose." Nobil of Design Within Reach points out a popular leather-wrapped, wooden sit-to-stand desk with integrated power and storage capabilities as a prime example of this type of piece.

“I think it’s almost going away, the concept of traditional office furniture," Varas says. “It’s going to be a mix of—I’ll call it lifestyle furniture—where you’re working, you’re utilizing, and you’re living all within one space."

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