Visitability

Visitability is the design approach for new homes whose main principle is that a non-resident using a wheelchair should be able to visit the home. A social visit requires the ability to get into the house, the ability to pass through interior doorways of the house, and the ability to get into a bathroom to use the toilet.

Newly constructed homes often contain the same major barriers as older, existing homes: steps at every entrance and narrow interior doors, with the bathroom door usually the narrowest door in the house. Supporters want to change new home construction practices so that virtually all new homes, whether or not designated for residents who currently have mobility impairments, offer three specific accessibility features that will make it possible for most people to visit:

These features are designed around the needs of a person using a wheelchair while visiting, but they are also helpful to people with other kinds of mobility impairments, for example, if a resident breaks a leg. Living permanently in the home with a significant mobility impairment requires two additional basic features on the main floor: a full bathroom and a bedroom (or a space that could be converted to a bedroom).

Visitability is similar to Universal Design in general intention, but is more focused in scope, more specific in parameters, and more explicitly grounded in a social reform intent.

Visitability features make homes easier for people who develop a mobility impairment to visit friends and extended family rather than having to turn down invitations, or not be invited at all. These features also provide a basic shell of access to permit formerly non-disabled people to remain in their homes if they develop a disability, rather than forcing them to do expensive renovations, relocate to a different house, live in an inaccessible home which endangers their health and safety, or move from the community into a nursing home.

Basic access goes beyond visiting. It also helps a person of any age who develops a temporary or permanent mobility impairment. Without basic access in place, architecture forces severe choices:

These issues can apply equally to a person who is recovering from surgery, or to a person who has used a wheelchair for decades.

Zero-step entrances on new homes are nearly always easy to construct, whether the terrain is flat or hilly. The entrance can be constructed at the front, side or back, wherever is most feasible for the topography. A driveway or sidewalk can be a tool for access to the best entrance. Porches and decks can be used to incorporate access, often in a manner where it is not as obvious as many ramps.

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Wikipedia