Home office design comes back

The home office, long a nomad roving from space to space and room to room, has staked a permanent claim on new home construction.

With an estimated 27 million people working from home at least part time -- and growing by 8 percent each year -- dedicated office space has gone from afterthought to necessity in today's lifestyle.

"Whether they use it as a traditional work environment for eight-hour stints or as a place to organize files, pay bills or go online, new home buyers want a well-organized place that is both functional and attractive," said Kent Goff, vice president of planning and design for Beazer Homes.

Still in its infancy, home office design runs the gamut from built-in cabinets that maximize wall space and accommodate his and her needs to practical family nooks that can easily handle today's technology and tomorrow's workload, he said.

"The home office clearly has to be as efficient as a well-tooled garage or hard-working kitchen, and yet as personal as a bathroom retreat," Goff said.

"Beazer offers a number of options from the traditional office space with loads of built-in storage to kitchen workstations wired for Internet."

A niche can work within lofts, landings and hallways. Niches are often overlooked, but can be good office space if you can't designate an entire room.

Upper and lower cabinets will help organize supplies, whether it's for office, hobby or homework.