Mike Holmes Says Your Home's Doors Should Probably Be Wider & He Has A Very Good Reason

You may not think much of it at first, but when you're trying to move oversized furniture pieces or even bring in a stroller to your home, you might realize that your doors are quite narrow. Standard interior doors can be as narrow as 24 inches. HGTV star Mike Holmes believes it shouldn't be this way. In fact, he wants the International Residential Code for builders to change the minimum interior door width requirement to 36 inches instead of the current 32-inch requirement, and he has a very good reason: accessibility.

Holmes has always advocated for building homes that work for everyone, regardless of their age or ability. In the past, he's even recommended the best kind of floors for wheelchairs and given bathroom renovation advice for aging residents. This time, his focus was doors and the importance of their width. In an April 2025 episode of his "Holmes on Homes" podcast, he spoke with Ronny Wiskin, accessibility specialist at MED+ Medical Equipment Distribution, about all of the things to consider when building a home that is truly wheelchair-friendly.

Holmes, his daughter, and Wiskin discussed some important points about building an accessible home, which included the issue of most homes not having doors that are wide enough. He said (via YouTube), "I know that people out there are coming home with surprises: broke my leg, got a new hip. All of a sudden you realize you can't get into the house until you get out of the car and go, 'How am I going to get into the house?'"

You might be thinking, "Why can't builders just install wider doors?" While the price difference for one door may seem almost minimal, Mike Holmes explained (via YouTube) when builders are building residential developments at a large scale, "$2 for every single door, that's a crap load of money that the builder is going to spend, who doesn't have to because he's operating on minimum code points."

Builders are a business, and they need to make profit. As such, they are going to seek ways to lower the cost of construction in every way possible, so it makes sense for many builders to operate on just meeting minimum code. Changing this code is not an easy feat, and Holmes said it's usually only done to protect the home and residents from natural disasters. 

That's why Holmes wants homebuyers to plan ahead for life's unexpected twists and turns and advocate for themselves. Although 32 inches is the minimum width requirement to meet ADA compliance, 36 inches is recommended for easier maneuverability. Homeowners can and should ask for the wider doors from their builders during construction. For those in older homes, you may be able to use the clever hinge trick to widen your doorway or have it done professionally for an average cost of just over $4,000. It might be a lofty investment, but it will save you from struggling to access your home down the road and could give you a 50% return on investment should you choose to sell.