Remodeling can help make a home more comfortable, but the process raises many concerns for seniors. Beyond the financial and logistical issues are the fears some have about working with contractors.

The Concerns

The remodeling industry is fragmented and not all contractors understand the wide variety of issues seniors encounter.  While anyone can install a grab bar in a shower, it takes more forethought to design a shower stall without a threshold or to change the kitchen lighting to accommodate someone with limited vision.

Then there is the issue of trust. There are many good contractors out there, but, unfortunately, there also are those who take advantage of consumers.

One Solution

The National Association of Home Builders' Remodelors Council is starting a certification program to teach contractors how to work with seniors. The three-day program will cover a range of issues, from how to communicate with seniors and assess their needs to how to redesign their homes.

An industry study showed that many seniors are afraid of being taken advantage of or fear that a contractor "wouldn't know what he was doing," said Dan Bawden, a remodeling contractor from Houston and a trustee of the Remodelors Council.

The program, which starts in May, will help contractors go into a home and assess the home owner's current and future needs. "What the program will do is give people the basics to be able to go into a home and find a solution that works for each home owner," said Robert Black, a contractor in Sarasota and president of Access of Sarasota, Inc., a remodeling company. Black also is a consultant to the NAHB on the Certified Aging-In-Place Specialist  program.

For more information, go to www.nahb.com or www.aarp.org.