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By Melissa Turner
Who would have thought one hundred years ago that people today could be reached anytime, anywhere through a palm-sized, cordless telephone or that kids could watch their favorite movie from the comfort of their car seat? These luxuries have changed our lives on the go, but today’s luxuries for the home are equally as intriguing, especially home elevators. Having a home elevator may have seemed more in tune with the economic status of the Vanderbilts or the Rockefellers at one time, but this new trend is making its way onto the general home building and remodeling scene as baby boomers look toward the future.
 For some it is the added home value, for others it is the convenience or ease of mobility, but whatever the reasons might be, more and more baby boomers seem to be warming up to the idea of having their own home elevator. “For aging baby boomers, moving out of their current homes isn’t always the best, or favorite, option,” Katy Tomasulo writes in the October 2002 issue of Remodeling Magazine. “In multi-level houses, installing a residential elevator or stair lift can allow many homeowners to stay put longer, while adding a touch of convenience and boosting the resale value.” Rodney Swann, sales manager at Chattanooga Elevator, Inc. says that residential elevators make up 25 percent of his sales and that the majority of home elevators are not purchased for immediate medical or health-related reasons but for a perceived future need.
 For one Chattanooga couple, having a home elevator was something they could have for the future while also putting it to good use in the present. It wasn’t until the their house burned down several years ago and they began to rebuild that John and Jo Peckinpaugh decided to purchase an elevator for their home and they began consulting with Swan. Today, walking into the foyer of the Peckinpaugh’s house, a door in the hallway is noticeable, but it could just as well be mistaken as a coat closet. The trim around the door and the controls blend in with the rest of the hallway and décor. But, when the door is opened, an elevator car awaits riders going to the next level.
Peckinpaugh hopes she and her husband won’t need their home elevator because of illness or immobility in the future, but they will have it available if necessity comes knocking.
Presently, the Peckinpaughs use their home elevator for visitors who need a little extra help getting around their multi-level home. “We have a health and wellness ministry that meets at our home two days a week,” Jo Peckinpaugh says. “Several of the people who come have had hip replacements or other health problems and they use the elevator so they can go up to the main floor where we have the classes.” The Peckinpaughs also use their home elevator when they want to move furniture from floor to floor. Instead of fighting against the stairs and the weight of a hefty couch or other item, they can load heavy pieces in their home elevator and take it up to the next floor with ease.
The Peckinpaughs’ situation may seem more like an exception than a rule, having an elevator in their home. But, as elevator costs come down and benefits become more attractive, baby boomers’ interest is growing.
“It’s becoming less of a practicality for mobility and more a trend toward luxury,” says architect Scott Bickford, of Bickford and Company in Kansas City, in an Abbey Home Elevator News article. “And why not? With the cost of the elevator significantly reduced over the last decade, it costs no more than an extra guestroom, third-car garage or even a luxury car. Not to mention it adds to the resale value.”
So what does it take to turn that spark of interest in having a home elevator into actually having a real elevator in your own home? According to industry guidelines from ThyssenKrupp Access, potential home elevator customers and their building or remodeling contractors need to first consider four main issues: 1. Determine the customer’s use for the elevator. 2. Determine local building code requirements. 3. Determine the installation parameters for the elevator and its size. 4. Determine the elevator car type and the hoistway size requirements.
Home elevators take up an average of 25 square feet of space in a house. Swann says the measurement of the smallest residential elevator car he sells is 36” x 48” and it can hold two people or a person in a wheelchair and one person standing. The largest unit Swann sells measures 40” x 54” and it can carry 4 people. The pricing of these units runs anywhere from $17,000 to $25,000, down from $25,000 to $35,000 a decade ago.
It usually takes a week to install a home elevator, but sometimes longer if there is more extensive remodeling necessary in adding an elevator to an existing floor plan. “Most times, the elevator can be added very easily,” Swann says. “In an existing home, it requires giving up an area or adding it strategically to the outside of the home, like a chimney.” Once a home elevator is up and running, maintenance is relatively simple and not too demanding. “Hydraulic models need a little more than other models,” Swann says. “But a clean-down and lubrication is recommended annually.”
Although the idea of even having a home elevator is still relatively novel, the elevator industry has seen the number of residential sales double within the past five years. Perhaps in coming years, having a home elevator will become a commonplace, everyday “necessity” like cell phones or DVD systems for vehicles. But in the meantime, whatever the future holds, home elevators definitely seem to be making a place in the middle to high-end home building and remodeling scene.
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