With a deeper understanding of homeowner project plans for 2021, you can better adjust your marketing and services to match the current demand. Interior remodelers are facing incredible opportunities for growth this year. Homeowners are ready to upgrade their homes, creating an unprecedented level of demand in the industry.
At Modernize, we connect homeowners with qualified contractors to meet these needs. Each year, we survey homeowners to gain insights into current customer demands and market trends.
Renovation contractors can benefit from our surveys because they can improve their marketing strategy that speaks to the desires of each homeowner. For example, in our recent survey, we analyzed vital benchmarks that are happening in the industry. Here is what you need to know about homeowners pursuing interior projects.
Shifting Demand Due to COVID-19
Our recent annual homeowner survey analyzes homeowner market trends during the pandemic. The results are clear: As the home improvement industry continues to witness shifts due to the pandemic, we see that the interior remodeling industry is booming.
As a result, homeowners are hiring contractors more quickly and frequently to change or improve their homes. Additionally, with the high demand for interior remodelers, pricing has become a more significant concern for many people who are ready to invest in home renovations.
Homeowner Project Plans
Forty-one percent of homeowners indicate they plan to make home improvements in the next three months. Additionally, 21 percent of homeowners are increasing their pursuit of home improvement projects than initially anticipated.
Here are a few of the homeowner insights we gathered for interior projects and exterior work, showing where people are prioritizing their spending:
- 32.64 percent of homeowners are planning for interior renovations, while 27.36 homeowners prefer to invest in outdoor projects
- 13.53 percent of these projects are prioritizing cosmetic upgrades, such as fixtures, painting, and flooring
People are ready to upgrade their lifestyles and improve the value of their homes. In fact, 33 percent of homeowners will start or begin interior remodeling projects this year. Interior remodelers play an essential role in this process, offering necessary services to fill these needs.
Spending Insights for Home Improvement
Price sensitivity is an increasing concern in the industry, especially with the current shortages in materials and labor. Cost is one of the most critical factors when homeowners are choosing a contractor. Some statistics to note:
- 83 percent of homeowners plan to keep their budget under $10,000
- 11 percent will invest over $15,000 on home improvement.
While some people can pay cash for home renovations, many homeowners still require financing to pay for these projects. For example, 31 percent of survey participants indicate they will finance up to 50 percent of the project. This number is higher than our 2020 survey results when only 20 percent of homeowners were financing up to 50 percent. In 2020, 30 percent of homeowners were planning to finance the entire project. In 2021, 26 percent of homeowners intend to finance the whole project.
Since many people are financing part or all of their home renovation projects, contractors may have a better chance of closing the deal by helping homeowners find the right financing solutions.
Contractor Selection and Preferences
When homeowners are ready to hire a contractor:
- 53 percent will turn to friends and family for referrals
- 14 percent rely on search engines
- 8 percent of homeowners use home improvement sites, such as Modernize.
When it comes to hiring a remodeler based on quotes, we found that
- 8 percent of homeowners will hire a contractor after one quote
- 38 percent of homeowners will compare two quotes
- 34 percent will compare three quotes
- 19 percent will compare four or more contractor quotes
For more Modernize homeowner insights, check out our full report about homeowner sentiment in 2021.
