Steady Gains in Remodeling Activity Moving into 2018

Healthy and stable growth in home improvement and repair spending is anticipated for the remainder of the year and into the first half of 2018, according to the Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) released by the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. The LIRA projects that annual increases in remodeling expenditures will soften somewhat moving forward, but still remain at or above 6% through the second quarter of 2018.

“The remodeling market continues to benefit from a stronger housing market and, in particular, solid gains in house prices, which are encouraging owners to make larger investments in their homes,” said Chris Herbert, managing director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies. “Yet, weak gains in home sales activity due to tight inventories in many parts of the country is constraining opportunities for more robust remodeling growth given that significant investments often occur around the time of a sale.”