UK homeowner spending on renovation projects has “surged” over the last three years, according to recent research from online design platform Houzz.
This was one of the key findings of the company’s 2024 “Houzz & Home Study”, which collected data from almost 2000 UK homeowners over the age of 18 about their recent renovation activity.
According to the report, median renovation spend has increased by 13% from 2020 to last year. To further corroborate this, the top 90th percentile of spend also doubled, from £100,000 in 2020, to £200,000 in 2023.
Encouragingly, Houzz found that renovation activity levels have remained relatively consistent since 2020. 48% of homeowners report having taken on a renovation project last year, which is only a 1% reduction over the previous year’s figure.
Looking at the age of those who are completing renovations, “Gen X” (those between the ages of 40 and 54) reportedly spend the most on renovation projects, being the biggest spenders for the second year in a row.
Gen X reported a median renovation spend of £22,000, compared with “Millenials” (those aged between 25 and 39) spending an average of £15,000, and “Baby Boomers” (those aged between 55-74) spending an average of £16,000.
In terms of activity, the Baby Boomer generation is leading the way by a landslide, and are responsible for 54% of renovations. They’re followed by Gen X, who is responsible for almost 34% of activity, and Millenials who report only 12%.
Respondents said that bathrooms are their most commonly renovated interior space, with roughly three-in-ten respondents (29%) saying it was their most frequent renovation. Kitchens and living rooms were the joint-second most commonly renovated space, with 26% of homeowners reporting them. Bedrooms were reported by one-in-four, and dining rooms were reported by 17% of participants.
Finally, Houzz also asked respondents why they had undertaken renovations at this particular time. 34% of respondents reported that they had wanted to complete renovations for a long time and only finally had the funds. Exactly the same number (34%) said that they had wanted to do it all along and only now feel like they have the time.
Three-in-ten respondents explained that they recently moved into a new property and wanted to furnish it properly, almost one-in-five (19%) renovated to address recently discovered deterioration or damage in the home, and the same number (19%) said that they renovated to adapt their home to family or lifestyle changes.
Several months ago, Houzz also released its 2024 state of the industry survey, reporting that designers, architects and building firms are generally more optimistic about the stability of the industry in 2024 than this time last year. Keith Moore, Houzz’s director for product marketing, also recently spoke to kbbreview about why retailers should create an action plan for their business.
