Greenbook: A Local Guide to Chesapeake Living - Issue 5 | Page 18

DAILY REAL ESTATE NEWS | MONDAY, MARCH 16, 2015

"After years of declining revenue and high failure
rates, the home improvement industry is, to some
extent, reinventing itself," says Kermit Baker, director of the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint
Center. "The industry is finding new ways to address
emerging growth markets and rebuild its workforce
to better serve an evolving customer base."
Remodelers point to several growth areas, including
retiring baby boomers looking to make accessibility
improvements to allow them to age in place,
sustainable home improvements and energy-efficient
upgrades due to growing environmental awareness,
and future projected growth from millennials.
"The millennials' increasing presence in the rental market has already helped to lift improvement spending in
that segment," says Chris Herbert, managing director
of the Joint Center. "It’s only a matter of time before
this generation becomes more active in the housing
market, supporting stronger growth in home improvement spending for decades to come."

greenbook | spring 2015

The home improvement industry could see
record-breaking spending in 2015, according to a
newly released report from the Joint Center for
Housing Studies of Harvard University. Since
the recession, the home improvement industry
has outpaced the broader housing market's
recovery.

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There are several factors behind the increase,
such as the strengthening of the economy, recovering home prices, federal and state stimulus
programs that are prompting a rise in energyefficient upgrades, and rental property owners
who are reinvesting in their properties to attract
new tenants.

Most of the increase in home improvement spending
has occured in metro areas with higher home values
and incomes, the report notes. Owners in metro
areas spent 50 percent more on improvement
projects, on average, than their non-metro
counterparts in 2013.