Residential Remodeling To See Slight Gains

Expenditures for improvements and repairs to the owner-occupied housing stock in the U.S. are expected to grow only modestly in 2023, says the Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) from the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. The LIRA projects gains in home renovation and maintenance spending from 16.3 per cent at the end of 2022 to 2.6 per cent by the close of 2023. “Slowdowns in existing home sales, house price appreciation, and mortgage refinancing activity coupled with growing concerns for a broader economic recession will cool home remodeling activity this year,” says Carlos Martín, project director of the Remodeling Futures Program. “Homeowners are likely to pull back on high-end discretionary projects and instead focus their spending on necessary replacements and smaller projects in the immediate future.”