Although it’s still a seller’s market, many homeowners are staying put. Some realize the housing shortage means they’ll face shortages and stiff competition when they want to buy another house. Other homeowners want to renovate to maximizee the profit margin when they decide to sell.
Regardless of the reason, a new report by Houzz reveals 2025 trends in home renovating, and Marine Sargsyan, Houzz staff economist, provides insight.
Various Types Of Home-Related Activities
The Houzz report reveals that in 2024, renovating was actually tied with decorating as the two most popular types of home-related activities among homeowners. Sargsyan explains that 54% of survey respondents engaged in renovations, and 54% decorated. “Also, 47% repaired their home, and 4% actually built a home.” Sargsyan says.
In 2025, she says there’s more of a focus on maintenance, and less on decorating. “We found that 52% are planning renovation projects, and 35% plan to invest in renovation projects.” However, only 44% plan to engage in decorating projects, and 2% plan to build a home.
Reasons To Renovate
When asked what’s fueling the desire to renovate, the majority (40%) of Houzz respondents stated that they finally had the time. In second place, 35% says they finally had the financial resources to take on a renovation project. Among other reasons, 21% are customizing a recently-purchased home. Sargsyan notes that 17% are addressing damage to a home due to age or other factor, and an additional 17% are adapting to recent lifestyle changes.
“At much lower numbers, 7% plan to sell the home soon, and another 7% renovate to address damage from a natural disaster,” Sargsyan says. When asked about damage to the home in the past 5 years, 14% had water damage from plumbing or other malfunctions, and 12% had damage from a natural disaster.
Bathrooms Are Gaining In Popularity
While kitchens have traditionally been the most popular space to renovate, the report reveals that guest bathrooms are catching up, as 24% of respondents said they’re renovating their bathrooms, which ties the 24% renovating the kitchen area.
In addition, Sargsyan says 22% of homeowners are remodeling the primary bathroom, 18% are choosing to renovate the living room, and 14% are renovating the guest bedroom. “Among other rooms in the house, closets, laundry rooms, and the primary bedroom are all tied at 13%,” she says.
Midrange Projects Rule
As it relates to budgeting and spending on renovation projects, Sargsyan says midrange projects ($10,000 to $49,000) made up the largest share (43%) in 2024. Drilling down, 25% of homeowners were in the $10,000 to $24,999 range, compared to 18% in the $25,000 to $49,000 range. At the other end of the spectrum, 16% of respondents spent more than $100,000 on renovation projects.
Paying For Renovation Projects
So, how are homeowners paying for their renovation projects? Sargsyan says 84% dip into their savings. “Credit cards are used by 29% of survey respondents, and 12% use secured home loans. Among this group, HELOCs (home equity loans of credit) were most popular, with 6% of homeowners selecting this route. “Cash-out refinancing and general home equity loans were both chosen by 3%,” Sargsyan says.
Homeowners also took other avenues to pay for renovations. For example,10% used cash from the sale of a home, while 5% used gifts and inheritances. Sargsyan notes that 5% used an insurance payoff.
Three other types of funds were also used: tax refunds (4%), unsecured loans (3%), and retirement plans (2%).
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