Can the home improvement market continue to grow?
Both Lowe’s and Home Depot are releasing quarterly earnings this week. A large part of their business is home improvement, which has been on the rise for years. But will the remodeling boom continue?
If you’ve turned on your TV in the last few years, you might have noticed … there are a lot of home improvement shows.
According to Abbe Will, a researcher at Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, there was a 5% growth in the market for home improvement last year. That’s because it’s been easier for Americans to fix what they’ve got, rather than buy.
“Homeowners aren’t seeing the types of homes that they want or, also, can afford,” she said.
Now, though, that might be changing.
“We are starting to see levels of new home construction that is finally starting to relieve that undersupply pressure, which will ultimately benefit the home improvement-related companies,” said Alex Pettee, president and director of research at Hoya Capital Real Estate.
That’s because, Pettee said, another big incentive to remodel is trying to sell your home so you can buy a new one.
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