The Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) predicts that remodeling and repair spending will decline 2.6% by the end of Q1 2025 compared to the same quarter of 2024, according to the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. Comparatively, the first quarter of 2024 indicated a 1.2% decline over the same period in 2023. Due to continued elevated prices and interest rates, the year is expected to reach its low point in the third quarter before beginning to rebound.
The LIRA, published quarterly, is a short-term outlook of U.S. home improvement and repair spending of owner-occupied homes. The report is designed to project an annual rate of change in expenditures for the current and subsequent four quarters. See Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies
