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Growth in improvement and repair expenditures to owner-occupied homes is expected to remain solid throughout the year and into 2022, according to the Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) released last week by the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. The LIRA projects a healthy pace of mid-single digit gains in annual home renovation and repair spending this year, with 4.8 percent growth by the first quarter of next year.

“With a financial boost from recent federal stimulus payments and strong house price appreciation, homeowners are continuing to invest in the upkeep and improvement of their homes,” Joint Center for Housing Studies Managing Director Chris Herbert said in a statement. “This lift in incomes and ongoing strength of the housing market are providing homeowners incentives to make even greater investments in their homes this year.”

“Although the recent surge in DIY activity is slackening as the economy continues to open up, homeowners are undertaking larger discretionary renovations that had been deferred during the pandemic,” Abbe Will, associate project director in the Remodeling Futures Program at the center, said in a statement. “A shift to more professional projects should boost annual homeowner remodeling expenditures to $370 billion by early next year.”

The Joint Center for Housing Studies previously predicted that remodeling spending will decline in the Greater Boston metro area on a year-over-year basis this year, with activity picking up in the fourth quarter.