"We are seeing a continuation of the sales trend of spending more money on the home," said Chad Syverson, store manager at Eau Claire Ace Hardware, 2618 Birch St., "with projects focusing on updating indoor decor with paint and new bath or electrical fixtures to the outside doing maintenance on lawns, gardens and decks."
Home improvement stores increasingly are finding favor with consumers. The U.S. Home Improvement Retailer Satisfaction Study, which recently was conducted by California-based global marketing information services firm J.D. Power and Associates, found that customer satisfaction with retail stores improved from a year ago.
"Shoppers, whether novices to home improvement or those who are more experienced, need not be intimidated by the store," said Christina Cooley, senior manager of the real estate and construction industries practice at J.D. Power and Associates. "Retailers have invested in improving their layouts and signage to help guide customers to the products that they are looking for."
The study also found:
n On average, customers shop at their primary home improvement retailer two to three times per month.
n The average customer has spent $1,650 at home improvement retailers within the past 12 months.
n Customers are spending a greater percentage of their overall annual expenditure at their primary home improvement store (72 percent) than a year ago (68 percent).
Case in point
After several years of perusing real estate listings and spending Sunday afternoons at open houses, Denise Majeski decided to stay put and fix up her 25-year-old Gurnee, Ill., home.
As the housing market languished even as the economy improved, Majeski determined the financially prudent course would be to fix up the house a little at a time, starting with replacing the windows and renovating the bathrooms.
"Initially we were thinking about moving," said Majeski, 55. "But that would require a mortgage and additional amounts of money. We can do a home improvement at a pace that we can afford."
It is a choice more homeowners are making these days.
Seasonal hiring at Lowe's, the nation's No. 2 home improvement retailer, is up 15 percent this spring as homeowners, feeling more secure in their jobs, tackle maintenance projects delayed during the recession. Eau Claire-based chain Menards is expanding again. It plans to build 12 stores this year, up from four in 2010.
And The Home Depot, the largest home improvement retailer, reported in February its first annual sales increase since 2006, before the housing market crashed. The home improvement business is stabilizing, despite the continued weakness of the housing market, Home Depot CEO Frank Blake said at the time.
"People are doing what it takes to be happy where they are," said Jack Horst, retail strategist at Kurt Salmon, a consulting firm. "They are more likely doing maintenance and replacement than big fundamental changes."
It's always a good idea to enhance home values with new roofing, windows, countertops, cabinets, appliances or garage doors, said Jeff Abbott, spokesman for Menards. He also said updating bathrooms, finishing basements and painting walls can add value.
"One trend we've noticed is that our guests are turning their yards into outdoor living spaces by building a new deck, adding some concrete blocks, creating a patio for grilling, putting in a fire pit or sprucing up their landscaping with new mulch, shrubs, flowers or trees," Abbott said.
Filling a void
The professional remodeling industry also has seen an increase in business to counter tepid demand for new homes.
"We are seeing a little uptick in new-home construction; however, remodeling is the mainstay of many of our members right now," said Karen Rockwell, executive officer of the Chippewa Valley Home Builders Association.
Rockwell said homeowners opt to remodel for a variety of reasons:
n If they are wanting to build in the future, remodeling is preparing their existing homes to be in a better position for resale.
n With the energy efficiency tax credits, remodeling is enabling homeowners to do projects that they would have held off on. Now they can afford the project and reduce their monthly energy bills.
n If you are like the typical homeowner, there is always room for change. Remodeling allows you to make some dramatic impact without changing everything in your life.
At the same time, home improvement stores and remodelers are getting an extra boost as homeowners dig out from a winter of record snowfalls and lengthy cold spells. The severe weather has left shingles, gutters and downspouts in need of repair, and lawns littered with broken shrubs and damaged trees.
"These are the have-to-do projects," said Jim Kane, president of Home Depot's northern division. "We've just come through a tough winter, and the winter has just taken its toll on all those things."
Maintenance and repairs account for about 40 percent of Home Depot sales, up sharply from recent years when home sales slowed, said Daniel Binder, an analyst at Jefferies & Co., in a report last month.
"With locations throughout the Midwest, we've come to expect that the weather is unpredictable," Abbott said, "but all we can really control is to have our stores fully stocked, well-maintained and ready to go."
Spending on home remodeling is expected to rise 9.1 percent in the first quarter to $125.1 billion from the same period a year ago, according to a widely followed index from Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies. The last time remodeling activity for a three-month period topped $125 billion was the second quarter of 2008.
The center predicts the industry to gain momentum this spring with sales jumping 12.7 percent, to $132.9 billion, in the second quarter from a year ago, before tapering off to a 6.5 percent gain, to $123.5 billion, in the third quarter.
Kris and Dennis Cortes of Flossmoor, Ill., are typical of the post-recession home remodelers, according to industry experts. The parents of five children said they chose to stay in the home they bought 20 years ago and to give the house a face-lift. They are adding a couple of gables to the roof, installing a new garage door and updating the landscaping.
"We could buy the megamansion, but we choose not to," said Kris Cortes, 46. "We're choosing to allocate our resources more toward education, charity and savings. I do think the country at large is headed in that direction."
Marlaire can be reached at 715-833-9215, 800-236-7077 or liam.marlaire@ecpc.com.
Customer Survey
Ace Hardware, which has several locations in the Chippewa Valley, and Eau Claire-based Menards fared well in the J.D. Power and Associates 2011 U.S. Home Improvement Retailer Satisfaction Study released Wednesday.
"(The recognition) reflects our goal of giving the right amount of service to each customer," said Chad Syverson, store manager at Eau Claire Ace Hardware. "From just saying hello all the way to taking the customer by the hand and helping them find what they need."
The study measures customer satisfaction with home improvement retail stores. It's based on performance in five areas, which are listed in order of importance: staff and service, store facility, merchandise, price, and sales and promotions.
Ace Hardware placed first, with a score of 786 on a 1,000-point scale. Lowe's was second, and Menards ranked third. The latter earned particularly high marks in sales and promotions and prices. Its score of 765 was above the industry average (754).
Sears, True Value, The Home Depot and Do It Best/Do It Center rounded out the top seven.
Visit tinyurl.com/44nmrjn for more information.
Leader-Telegram staff
Source http://www.leadertelegram.com/
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