Enquiries on home renovation and design platform Houzz surged in January 2021, with a 53% increase in demand for home professionals, and kitchen renovation enquiries and kitchen design projects up by 136% and 68% respectively, as compared to the same period in 2020. According to the platform, this optimistic outlook bodes well for professionals offering renovation and design services, as homeowners decide to make big changes in their homes.
The website says that professionals providing building services saw the biggest rise, with demand for home builders and design-and-build firms increasing by 154% and 122% respectively, compared with the same period in the previous year. Garden projects continue to be popular too, with landscape contractors and landscape architects seeing a surge in interest (up by 116% and 76%, respectively).
The counties that saw the biggest increase in renovation activity include the West Midlands, Cheshire, North Yorkshire and Kent (171%, 133%, 132% and 104%, respectively). Within London, the area that saw the most demand was Enfield and Haringey, which rose by 125%.
“Making our homes work better has become a priority for many homeowners this year as people have spent more time indoors during the pandemic. We’re seeing an increase in demand for home improvement projects across the country, with homeowners reaching out to professionals on Houzz for major projects such as kitchen renovations, extensions and loft conversions,” said Andrew Small, MD for Houzz International Industry Solutions. “The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted our need as homeowners to feel comfortable when inviting pros into our homes. Recent additions to the Houzz platform, such as the video meetings tool, used to schedule virtual meetings with pros through Houzz Pro, are enabling projects to move forward safely and efficiently.”
Other highlights from the data include demand for home remodelling and home extension projects, which rose by 120% and 41% respectively.
