When people think about the home improvement boom, they often only consider the past few years. However, this market has been steadily growing for more than a decade and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. If you’ve been thinking about remodeling or improving your home, here’s why you should go for it.

The Rise in the Popularity of Home Improvement

Home improvement is one of the most popular hobbies in the United States, especially due to the pandemic. You may be surprised to learn that a growing number of Americans are finding great joy in improving their homes. Your home is a place where you live, but it can also be an investment that improves your quality of life or increases its value.

Home improvement projects can make your home more energy efficient and comfortable by adding pool pumps, installing new windows (or repairing old ones), incorporating home automation, upgrading air conditioning, water heating, or HVAC systems, etc. The list goes on!

The Average Age of an American Home

The average U.S. home is 20 to 31 years old. That means that most homes need some kind of work done on them. And while this can be daunting, it also presents an opportunity for growth in the industry: homeowners are investing more in their homes than ever before—and they’re doing it on their own terms and schedules.

The home improvement and remodeling industry has been growing steadily since 1998 and shows no signs of slowing down any time soon; its value was $762.9 billion in 2020 alone, up from $212 billion just eight years earlier.

The Current State of America’s Housing Market

The housing market is still strong, but there are some signs that it’s beginning to cool off. Home prices have been declining since peaking in 2017, when they were up 6.3 percent year-over-year. But while that may sound like a lot, they’re actually down only 10 percent from the peak reached during the 2008 housing crash—and overall prices are still 46 percent higher than they were at the decade’s end.

Meanwhile, homeownership rates are still recovering from their peak in 2004 (prior to the recession). This decrease is due in part to demographic changes: Millennials are delaying marriage and starting families later than previous generations did; therefore, many will move into new homes later in life. However, this suggests that homeownership will remain somewhat stable in the future, albeit somewhat later than expected.

Inflation Reduction Act

The Inflation Reduction Act was passed to make home improvement costs more affordable for American homeowners while combating the climate crisis. The tax incentives for homeowners to make home improvements include up to $14,000 in rebates and tax credits.

There are two separate rebate programs from which Americans can benefit:

• The HOMES Rebate Program provides states with over $4 billion to help homeowners make their homes more energy-efficient.
• High-Efficiency Electric Home Rebate Act (HEEHRA) offers rebates for low to middle-income families, capped at $14,000.

If you’re interested in upgrading your home, but aren’t sure where to start, look no further than Breeze Lease! We bring the home of your dreams just that much closer with our flexible lease-purchase solutions, no matter your financial situation. To learn more, contact us today!