Report: Spending on remodeling will continue to fall
Contractors hoping that less home buying will mean more home improvement work this year are doomed to disappointment, predicts Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies. Its forecast calls for remodeling activity to fall 4.8 percent through the end of 2008.
From the center's press release:
“Spending on home improvements continues to be sluggish, as homeowners respond to falling home prices,” notes Nicolas P. Retsinas, director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies. “The fall-off in pending home sales suggests a long and slow recovery.”“It looks unlikely that we will see any improvement in the remodeling market until 2009,” remarks Kermit Baker, director of the Remodeling Futures Program of the Joint Center. “Currently, the second half of this year is shaping up to be weaker than the first half.”
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