Maintenance was the main activity for US DIYers in the third quarter of 2024

In the third quarter of 2024, 51 per cent of US homeowners completed a home improvement, repair or maintenance project (Q1: 47 per cent, Q2: 42 per cent), with maintenance projects leading the way among 4 out of 5 homeowners that completed a project. This is shown by the Farnsworth Group’s „Quarterly Homeowner Activity Tracker“.

The tracker also states that homeowners continue to view the third quarter as a favorable time for initiating home improvement projects under USD 5,000. In contrast, one-third of the homeowners who completed projects postponed or canceled additional projects. Rising financial and health concerns are cited as the main reasons. The main reasons for non-project-completing homeowners to postpone or cancel a home improvement activity were budget and labor costs, with health concerns and material shortages doubling as reasons (health concerns: Q2: 5 per cent, Q3: 11 per cent; material availability: Q2: 9 per cent, Q3: 19 per cent).

In the third quarter, 3 per cent more homeowners faced challenges, compared to Q2. Project costs remained the top issue, with knowledge (+1 per cent) and quality concerns (+5 per cent) rising compared to the second quarter.

The distribution channels for home improvement products were dominated by Big-Box retailers such as Home Depot, Lowe’s, etc.