Home Remodeling Activity, Spending to Grow by 2013: Harvard Study

click image to zoom CAMBRIDGE, MA – Home remodeling activity in the U.S. could see accelerated growth by year’s end and into 2013, according to the Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) released today by the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.

Money spent on home improvement projects could also reach double-digit growth during this time, according to the LIRA.

“Warm weather in the first quarter temporarily bumped up remodeling activity in many areas,” Joint Center Managing Director Eric S. Belsky said in a statement. “By the end of the year, however, positive market fundamentals are expected to kick in, moving the industry out of this ebb and flow period and into a new growth phase.”

Kermit Baker, director of the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center, added, “Home improvement activity has been bouncing around the bottom of this cycle for almost three years now, waiting for the industry to get some traction. Now, the combination of low financing costs, stronger consumer confidence, improving home sales, and the perception that home prices have stabilized in most markets across the country are encouraging owners to start working on the list of home improvement projects they have been putting off. ”

For an historical look at home improvement activity since 1995, click here.