HomeStars is Canada’s #1 marketplace, connecting home service professionals with job-ready homeowners. It’s our mission to understand and stay up-to-date with current and past homeowner trends in order to keep our dedicated pros one step ahead of the competition, and in the know of what’s to come in the home improvement industry.
In the Spring of 2019, we surveyed over one thousand homeowners across Canada to understand and uncover vital industry trends, including the most popular projects, spending behaviour by province, and what’s on the horizon for the home improvement industry. If you haven’t already, check out the full HomeStars Reno Report to learn about attitudes, intentions and spending as it relates to home improvement. To recap, here are some interesting key findings.
Homeowners Are Choosing to Stay Put and Renovate!
After surveying not just one but four generations of homeowners, the results are clear: Canadian’s are opting to stay in their homes rather than move. In addition to staying put, Canadian homeowners are looking to make improvements to their homes, with 48% currently considering renovating all or part of their homes in 2020. Plus, 77% of homeowners reported that they had cash on hand to carry out their repairs and renovations.
Furthermore, our survey indicated many Canadians are living in older houses, between 20 – 69 years old, so it’s not surprising that home renovations and minor repairs are carved out in their budgets this year.
- 57% of homeowners completed one to two smaller repairs last year, with 36% completing between three and ten repairs – 23% of homeowners spent $2,000 – $5,000, 24% spent $5,000 – $20,000 and only 5% spent more than $20,000.
- 57% of homeowners completed one or two major projects — 26% spent between $5,000 and $20,000, and 8% spent more than $20,000 in 2019.
Top Home Projects Include Painting, Kitchen and Bathroom Renovations
We wanted to learn more about what services homeowners are looking for most, and the results are in: painting, bathroom renovations, and kitchen renovations were on the top of the homeowner’s hiring list.
With painting job requests on HomeStars increasing 142% from February to May 2019, it is clear that homeowners are avidly searching for qualified pros to help spruce up their homes. Bathrooms won the battle when it came to major home renovations planned in the next 12 months at 24%. Kitchens followed at 20%.
Alberta Had the Most Substantial Number of High-Priced Renos
A look at spending over the last 12 months by province revealed that Alberta had the highest percentage of renovations valued at over $50,000. With the unfortunate and devastating Fort McMurray fires, many homeowners were in dire need of renovations and repairs.
Ontario homeowners completed the most projects in the price range of $10,000 – $20,000, while British Columbia had the highest percentage of renovations under $5,000, likely due to the market stabilization brought on by government regulations, like the foreign buyer’s tax.
What’s Next for the Canadian Home Renovation Industry?
91% of homeowners will continue to renovate and repair their homes, with a mere 9% planning to sell in the next 12 months. Homeowners will continue to improve their homes, millennials especially, with 74% saying they will spend as much or more on repairs in the coming year, and 72% saying they plan to spend as much or more on larger renovations! Contractors of all kinds can expect to be working with younger millennial clients who appreciate “fixer-uppers” and are willing to invest the time and energy into renovations.
As millennials ramp up their renovation spend in 2020; one can easily expect that this tech-savvy cohort will be researching online more than ever before. With 88% of homeowners reading reviews before making a hiring decision, and 80% saying they trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation from friends or family, these stats should continue to grow in the years to come; therefore it’s essential that businesses continue to build a strong online presence on trusted and popular homeowner platforms, such as HomeStars.
Learn More…
While it’s clear that Canadians are investing in their homes, natural disasters affect home improvement spending, and millennials are top spenders; check out the entire Reno Report to further your learnings on Canadian homeowner trends. Discover additional forecasts, like what other generations such as baby boomers and Gen X are up to in the home reno world, and what other home renovation costs are looking like per service!
