Pandemic-era home renovation fades

Five Killer Charts

Good morning – here are your five chart for the day. Each one comes snap stat, quick take and why it matters. Skim, steal, forward (but always credit!!).

CHART 1 • US Home Renovation Spending Decline

The great American home renovation splurge has hit a brick wall. After rocketing from around $300 billion in pre-pandemic times to over $500 billion at the peak in late 2022, US homeowner spending on remodeling and repair has plateaued and started to decline. The Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies shows spending has been "broadly flat" since Q4 2022, marking the end of an unprecedented boom that saw Americans pour record amounts into transforming their living spaces.

This represents a fundamental shift in consumer priorities after the pandemic-era frenzy. During 2020-2022, rock-bottom interest rates, massive home equity gains, remote work adoption, and stimulus-fueled savings created perfect conditions for renovation spending to explode 24% over two years. DIY projects alone surged 44% to a record $66 billion as homeowners had both time and money to invest in their properties.

But economic reality has set in hard. Rising interest rates, declining home sales, labour shortages, and material cost inflation have all conspired to cool the market. The latest data shows median renovation spending dropped from $24,000 in 2023 to $20,000 in 2024, with major reductions in discretionary spaces like home offices (down 50%) and bedrooms (down 21%). Americans are still renovating, but they're being much more selective about where they spend their dollars.

The flattening signals a return to more sustainable renovation patterns after an unsustainable pandemic-driven surge that was never going to last forever.

Snap stat – Home renovation spending peaked at $513B in Q4 2022, now flat since then

Quick take – The pandemic renovation boom is over as economic reality replaces easy money

Why it matters – Home improvement retailers and contractors face prolonged headwinds as spending normalizes

Steal-this-caption – "When staying home stops meaning spending on home"

Source: Chartr

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