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Remodeling Boom Means Business for Building Materials Industry

Posted by Kevin Walli | Wed, Nov 14, 2012 @ 02:00 PM

RemodelingHome remodeling activity is currently undergoing a boom, and that's good news for contractors and businesses in the building supply industry. With the trend in home remodeling expected to continue growing, building supply businesses as well as landscaping, flooring, interior and exterior painting, home furnishing stores and roofing contractors are expected to benefit with gains in business.

Nationwide upward trends in home improvement activity have been tracked by both the National Association of Home Builders and Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies. These studies found the major factors influencing the remodeling boom include:

1. Increasing rates of consumer confidence in the economic recovery
2. Growing demands for rental properties, buoyed by declining rates in home ownership
3. Improvement in home sales and value encouraging people to get going on previously-deferred projects
4. Strengthened builder confidence in single-family and multi-family dwellings

All of this means terrific opportunities for building professionals and contractors. Contractors have been hard hit over the past few years. My roofing contractor pulled up to my house in a used Toyota Camry. He had sold his truck to make ends meet! But that may all change according to a recent poll of nearly 3,000 builders and construction industry professionals. More than 50 percent of respondents felt that the economy would be much stronger by the end of 2015. Anticipating that upward trend, 43 percent of multi-family home builders and 41 percent of single-family home builders felt confident that their sales rates would increase by at least 10 percent over the next few years.  

Nothing will spur the economy like getting all of those man caves under construction.

It appears that businesses in the building supply industry can expect solid growth in both the short term and over the next few years. In October of 2012, the Remodeling Market Index (RMI), an important benchmark for trend-tracking in the home remodeling industry, reported an increase of more than 5 percent, with even stronger future gains in the forecast. The National Association of Home Builders is predicting double-digit increases in home improvement activity for early 2013.

These trends signal sales opportunities for home improvement retailers as well as contractors and builders.  For home improvement stores, major purchases totaling hundreds or even thousands of dollars are fairly commonplace as new kitchens, bathrooms and, yes, man caves are renovated and remodeled. These transactions are the bread and butter of home stores, so helping customers to make major purchases should be a primary focus.

With new business on the horizon, now may be a good time to evaluate your payment services. Picture the husband and wife shopping at a home improvement center. He is directing the cart to the gas grills while she is pulling it towards the kitchen remodeling displays. When the economy is really good they both fill the cart, leading to opportunities for you. Payment programs like Multiple Check help you accommodate these customers with payment flexibility letting them pay for major purchases by checks deposited over a period of time. 

For more on how these services accommodate your customers and can increase sales for you, download our check processing guides

building materials, green, eco-friendly

Topics: Home Furnishings, Building Materials

Written by Kevin Walli

Kevin Walli is an award-winning graphic designer with 18-plus years of experience in graphic design, web design and photography. Flexible and creative with an excellent sense of humor, Kevin enjoys spending time with his family, photography, reading, music and sports.