Home renovations are already in full swing for some spring cleaners, with recent data from Civic Science showing that nearly 10% of Americans plan to use their tax returns toward home renovations this year. On top of that, the latest Economic Sentiment Index readings show growing confidence in large purchases such as home renovations.
Due to the increased interest, Civic Science took a deeper dive into the current state of home renovation to see what's coming next.
1. More than 6 in 10 homeowners plan to make some type of home improvement. Lead a DIY home project.
Over the next 12 months, 62% of American homeowners plan to renovate or renovate their homes. up from 48% in 2023. As in recent years, DIY is outpacing professional work. Of those with plans, 43% say they will do the renovations themselves (up 5 points from 2023), compared with 29% who plan to hire only professionals (down 3 points from 2023) . The least popular method is to combine hiring a professional with her DIY work (28%).
Nearly half of low- and moderate-income households are doing only DIY home projects this year, compared to a quarter who are hiring professionals (the rest plan to do a combination of both). Meanwhile, higher-income households are more likely to hire professionals (37%) and less likely to DIY (32%).
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2. Bathroom renovation is at the top of the list.
Among the different types of renovations, bathroom projects are the most popular this year, surpassing last year's most popular, outdoor renovations. 40% of DIY users and 44% of those who hire a contractor plan to renovate their bathroom this year.
Kitchen remodeling is also popular among both types of home remodelers. On the other hand, outdoor renovations were significantly more popular among those doing their DIY projects (by a 7 point difference), a significant decrease compared to last year.
3. Americans are spending more on home improvements than they were in 2019, but they are still most likely to spend less than $5,000.
Americans are spending more on home improvements than before the pandemic. The percentage planning to spend less than $5,000 has decreased significantly since 2019, but the percentage planning to spend more than $15,000 has increased since 2019.
39% of people currently renovating are planning to spend less than $5,000, and an additional 25% plan to spend less than $15,000 in the next six months. The remaining 36% are considering spending more than $15,000 on her. These numbers are relatively similar to last year, suggesting Americans continue to prioritize home improvements.
As expected, people who do DIY projects intend to spend less than people who hire professionals. Nearly 6 in 10 DIY users plan to spend less than $5,000 on their projects, while more than 7 in 10 Americans who hire professional contractors plan to spend $5,000 or more on their projects. spend.
Additional data from CivicScience shows that Home Depot customers are slightly more likely to spend more on home improvements over the next six months than Lowe's customers. Fifty-eight percent of Home Depot customers making home improvements say they plan to spend $5,000 or more in the next six months, while 55 percent of Lowe's customers plan to do the same. Masu.
4. How do Americans hire contractors?
When it comes to DIY home projects, Americans often turn to social media, blogs, and friends and family. But how people hire experts is less specific. According to research from New CivicScience, people are most likely to ask friends and family for contractor recommendations (32%), followed by home improvement retail services (e.g. Lowe's and Home Depot, 20%) and social media apps ( For example: Facebook and Nextdoor). , 18%). Interestingly, web searches (15%) are less popular for finding contractors, and fewer people use home service websites like Angi (formerly Angie's List) and Thumbtack (4%). n=1,359, from 03/27/2024 to 04/01/2024).
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Overall, renovations, especially DIY home renovations, have been gaining momentum since last year. Perhaps he thinks that DIY users want to save money. Nearly 4 in 10 renovators spend less than $5,000 on an improvement project, and for DIY renovators, this number jumps to more than 6 in 10. Additionally, unlike last year when outdoor projects were the most popular, bathroom renovations are now at the top of the list for residential projects. DIY enthusiasts obviously work on their own to complete a project, but those looking for a contractor turn to friends and family for advice rather than searching online.
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