According to new data from the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, homeowners have become a bit more conservative in their spending for remodeling projects over the past year, but the industry is expected to pick up speed by the end of 2015.
The data was collected for the Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) group, which is part of Harvard’s Remodeling Futures Program and which analyzes national spending habits for homeowners.
According to the Central Valley Business Times, LIRA found that remodeling projects have been put on hold in many places, primarily because the housing market has slowed down in the past year.
“One of the largest contributors to this dampening of remodeling growth in 2015 is the sluggish existing home sales activity last year,” said Chris Herbert, the managing director of Harvard’s Joint Center. “Housing turnover typically sparks significant improvement spending as new owners customize their recent purchases to fit their needs and, with sales down last year, remodeling will feel the effects this year.”
The Lowell Sun states that LIRA is currently predicting the national spending on remodeling projects to reach about $138.4 billion by the end of this quarter, which would be a 4.4% increase from second quarter spending during 2014.
LIRA also predicts that remodeling projects will account for $140.8 billion during the third quarter of 2015, which would be 2.1% higher than the third quarter of 2014, and fourth quarter spending is expected to reach $147.4 billion, up by 2.9% from the end of 2014.
This prediction matches up perfectly with reports that surfaced at the beginning of 2015, which stated that about 60% of homeowners were planning on spending more money on home repairs and renovations than what they spent during 2014. Additionally, as the housing market continues to grow and stabilize throughout 2015, new homeowners are likely to contribute to the home repair and remodeling industry significantly.
