77 per cent of all homeowners reported they had the cash on hand to fund their last major home improvement project

Alberta was the province with the highest percentage of home renovations over $50,000 during the last 12 months, according to a new study.

“The higher spend in Alberta may be attributed to the devastating fire in Fort McMurray which resulted in a boost to renovations and repairs on homes in that area, with many projects still underway this year,” says the first ever Reno Report by HomeStars, Canada’s largest online marketplace connecting homeowners with home service professionals.

The report says nearly two-thirds of surveyed Canadians indicated that they planned to spend as much or more on improving their homes in the next 12 months, as they did in the past year. 

In the past year, 57 per cent of Canadian homeowners did one or two major renovations, with 26 per cent spending between $5,000 and $20,000, and eight per cent spending more than $20,000 in the last year.

The report said 57 per cent of homeowners completed one to two smaller repairs during the last year, with 36 per cent completing between three and 10 repairs. Also 23 per cent of homeowners spent $2,000 – $5,000, 24 per cent spent $5,000 – $20,000 and only five per cent spent more than $20,000 on their home repairs last year.

Other key findings from the survey include: 

• 77 per cent of all homeowners reported they had the cash on hand to fund their last major home improvement project. Of the remaining 23 per cent who had to finance, millennials are the generation most likely to finance any home project using their credit cards;
• 64 per cent of all respondents said they may consider renovating their home in the next year;
• Bathrooms were the number one major home renovation project planned in the next 12 months at 24 per cent, followed by kitchens at 20 per cent;
• 88 per cent of Canadians will conduct research on pricing before hiring a home service professional for a major project.

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