A greater variety of resources available to homeowners and the abundance of inspiration available on home improvement-focused television programs is leading more homeowners to tackle renovation projects without the aid of professionals. According to the Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI), roughly two-thirds of completed home improvement projects are done completely DIY. HIRI recently released a report and infographic highlighting the attitudes, demographics, and home improvement actions of DIY projects to help better understand homeowner activities.
Of projects completed, roughly two-thirds are done completely DIY, and three-quarters have at lease some DIY involvement. The level of professional work is dependent on the project. Painting and landscaping are overwhelmingly DIY, while roof and siding replacement are heavily dependent on professional work. While most who finish their projects are satisfied, those who complete it themselves (DIY) have higher satisfaction.
Projects that are done with professionals cost significantly more than those done DIY, and most often cost more than expected. Projects that more often use pro's to do the work also tend to be more costly in general, regardless of completion method. Those who used professional contractors showed a higher likelihood of having the total cost of their project be higher than expected.
As the homeowner ages, they tend to move away from doing the work by themselves, and shift to utilize professional contractors more frequently. Boomers are twice as likely to hire a pro than a Millennial. Pro use is household income dependent. As income goes up, so does the likelihood that they hired a contractor to complete their project.
The data in the HIRI infographic comes from the institute's Project Division and Product Purchase Tracking Study.
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