What to Expect from the Home Improvement Industry During the Last Half of the Year
Despite supply-chain challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the home improvement industry has continued to flourish. Economists expect the industry to surpass the $281 billion in revenue it generated in 2021.
With inflation running high in many areas, the red-hot housing market of the pandemic is now cooling down. Home mortgage rates spiked from 3 to 5 percent within a few months, leading buyers to hold off purchasing homes. Instead of flipping houses, many homeowners are focusing on doing the next best thing for their investments: home improvement.
What Inflation? Home Improvement Industry Market Will Continue to Grow
During the pandemic, the increased demand for homes led many homeowners to touch up their properties. At the same time, employees forced to work from home seized the opportunity to start their home DIY projects. As a result, many homeowners trooped to their local hardware stores for housing materials and professional homebuilders ramped up projects to meet the suddenly increased demand.
The renewed interest in DIY projects and the spike in demand for homebuilding materials helped the home improvement industry experience a mini-renaissance. Forbes reported the average spend for home improvement projects increased from $9,081 in 2019 to $13,138 a year later. Supply chain issues and labor shortages may have briefly stalled some DIY projects, but 2022 has seen a renewed interest in renovating and remodeling homes.
Here are the top home improvement trends to watch through the end of the year.
Trend 1: Home Office Makeovers
During the pandemic, many employees scrambled to turn a portion of their houses into offices to work from home. The results were often a ragtag, makeshift arrangement that spilled over into areas where other family members perform their daily routines. Two years later, the clamor for workers to continue working remotely is stronger than ever. While many will return to the office this year, others will stay home after winning the right to maintain at least a hybrid setup.
Those who retained their remote work privileges are putting more thought into their home office layouts. Instead of just dumping the office laptop onto a spare table, people are creating a workspace conducive to Zoom call meetings while retaining a homey atmosphere. To meet the need of an improved hybrid experience, the home improvement industry expects more home office DIY projects this year.
Trend 2: Enhanced Outdoor Spaces
Homeowners also turned their attention to outdoor DIY projects during the pandemic — the average homeowner spent $8,408 in 2021 to improve their yard. This included projects for outdoor amenities such as porches, decks, patios and terraces. Many stay-at-home workers also began improving their lawns as they anticipated spending more time at the house with their loved ones. Some want their gardens or yards to be an extension of the home office, especially when the weather is inviting.
In addition, the home improvement industry noted a growing trend for more outdoor rooms such as outdoor kitchens and rec rooms, which fit nicely with the increase in home gardening during the pandemic. If homeowners need to work at home for certain periods, they might as well enjoy lots of open spaces and greenery — after all, not everyone gets a room with a view at the corporate office. Plus, after spending the majority of the past two years cooped up inside, people are clamoring for more of the great outdoors.
Trend 3: Focus on Nature Colors, Patterns and Textures
As more people seek wide open spaces, a return to nature is also taking effect. According to Vogue magazine, 2022 has seen the comeback of nature-inspired colors, patterns and themes in DIY home improvement projects. This includes the reintroduction of natural finishes such as stoneware, terracotta and marble — designs, textures and materials that provide a calmness reminiscent of communing with nature.
The resurgence of natural elements is also leading to increased landscaping, though not just adding trees, shrubs or plants to the garden or the yard. The return to nature also means bringing more greenery inside the home with indoor plants and vases of fresh flowers to brighten up rooms.
Trend 4: Emphasis on Sustainability and Wellness
After spending the past two years exhausted over the coronavirus threat, many homeowners want to get away from nerve-wracking atmospheres and step into more tranquil environments. Home improvement industry experts are noticing more DIY home projects that promote health, wellness and tranquility. This Zen-like approach to redesigning homes aims to inject serenity and calmness into a tense home environment. The designs often feature less clutter while providing more spaces for people to stay calm.
One possible offshoot of this Zen resurgence is the increased preference for sustainable building materials. Instead of focusing on expensive and hard-to-find materials, homeowners are constructing their projects with eco-friendly, sustainable and recyclable materials that minimize the impact on the environment. As a result, the home improvement industry expects a surge in DIY projects suggesting elements of good health and wellness in the designs and components.
Seal the Deal with Dynamic Presentation Software
Design proposals for homeowners planning to remodel their homes should be dynamic and highly engaging. Ingage is cloud-based presentation software that helps teams create interactive presentations that bring depth to their sales pitches. For instance, display all color and pattern options on one page using the button feature. Or, immerse your prospective customers in their dream design using video.
Equipped with Ingage’s presentation software, your salespeople can create and present stories that follow the direction set by your customers. The software’s interactive features provide additional detail in specific areas of the presentation should your clients ask for more information.
Ingage’s cloud features also allow entire teams to collaborate on a single project, so everybody can work together to improve and refine the presentation. Powerful analytic tools identify areas where the presentation could use more polish.
Learn more about Ingage, get a free demonstration and see how it can help your team deliver more engaging presentations and close more sales.