When refactoring React components, maintain essential component patterns including type annotations, ref forwarding capabilities, and thoughtful component composition. Avoid losing important functionality during simplification. Key considerations: - Preserve component type annotations when converting between component patterns (e.g., forwardRef to regular functions) - Ensure ref forwarding remains functional for parent components that need to pass refs - Consider component hierarchy and whether wrapper components can be simplified or consolidated - Maintain consistency with similar components in the codebase Example of preserving component type during refactoring: ```javascript // Before: forwardRef with component type const View: component(...) = React.forwardRef(...) // After: regular function but preserve the type function View({...}: Props): React.Node { // component logic } export default View as component( ref?: React.RefSetter>, ...props: ViewProps ); ``` For ref forwarding, ensure parent components can still pass refs by merging internal refs with forwarded ones, similar to patterns used in TouchableOpacity. When restructuring component hierarchies (like SafeAreaView/View combinations), evaluate whether the nesting serves a purpose or can be simplified while maintaining the same functionality.