Home improvement spending will slow down to a 3.1 percent rate of change in the second quarter of 2015, according to the Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity released by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.
The LIRA also predicts an increase in homeowner improvement during quarter three and four this year, peaking at a 7.9 percent rate of change, before slowing to 7.2 percent in the first quarter of 2015 and 3.1 percent in the second.
The most recent actual figures from the U.S. Census Bureau puts homeowner improvements in the second quarter of 2014 at a 2.3 percent rate of change.
“Stronger gains in remodeling activity are unlikely given the recent slowdowns we’ve seen in housing starts, sales and house price gains,” said Chris Herbert, acting managing director of the Joint Center, in a statement. “While the continued recovery in employment should ultimately keep the market on an upward trajectory, remodeling is likely to see slower growth rates moving into 2015.”
