AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The BuildFax October Housing Health Report found the rate of remodeling spend has increased substantially (16.57 percent year over year) while annual remodel volumes dipped 4.21 percent, even as new construction wavers. The report, which leverages U.S. property condition and history data to deliver macroeconomic as well as more granular trends, also indicates these trends point to a lock-in effect among homeowners who are hesitant to re-enter the housing market.
Housing Supply by Volume
- Single-family housing authorizations remained flat year over year.
- Maintenance volume increased 0.41 percent year over year.
- Remodel volume decreased 4.21 percent year over year.
“Home prices are outpacing wage growth substantially,” said BuildFax CEO Holly Tachovsky. “These affordability concerns are compounded by mounting mortgage rates and rising construction costs. As a result, homeowners, unable to re-enter the housing market, are reinvesting in their existing properties. The increase in remodel spend suggests the scope of these projects has risen, despite seeing a dip in remodel volume. Homeowners may feel unprepared to enter the housing market, but they are making larger investments in the health of their existing property.”
The report also looked at maintenance activity on the state level. The report shows that Florida is demonstrating steep declines in year-over-year maintenance volume (-7.83 percent) after inflated maintenance activity post Hurricane Irma.
Primarily in states with rapidly growing populations, homeowners are turning to alternative options, like accessory dwelling units (ADUs) for affordability. The report discovered ADU construction activity has increased substantially in California, Oregon and Washington. California shows the continued highest volume of ADU construction activity with a year-to-date increase of 53.7 percent.
For a look at more trends affecting the U.S. housing market, access the full report here. To learn more about BuildFax, visit www.buildfax.com.
ABOUT BUILDFAX
BuildFax, headquartered in Austin, Texas, is trusted by the largest insurance and financial institutions in the world to deliver business-critical property condition and history data. With the only database of its kind encompassing more than 23 billion data points on commercial and residential structures, BuildFax delivers detailed data on remodeling, solar installations, new construction, roof age, major systems, maintenance history and more. To learn more about BuildFax, visit www.buildfax.com.
METHODOLOGY: BuildFax conducted this study by examining properties in the U.S. between the years 2013 and July 2018. Data only includes properties located within permitting authorities with 100 percent coverage during the above time frame. All percentage increase and decrease statistics leverage the same data set across time. Due to historical revisions made by permitting authorities, the data is subject to change.