HIRI Economic Industry Update

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HIRI now forecasts 2.6% growth for the U.S. home improvement products market in 2026, accelerating to an average 3.8% a year from 2027 to 2029.

The market is projected to reach $540.1 billion in 2026, up from a revised $526.5 billion in 2025, according to HIRI's U.S. Home Improvement Products Market Forecast. Growth keeps building each year after that, pushing the market past $600 billion by 2029.

Construction employment jumped 340% from June to July despite the broader economy losing 23,000 jobs in July.

Construction's unemployment rate fell to 3.7%, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. National unemployment fell to 4.1%, but July's jobs report flipped negative, a reversal from June's 20,000 gain.

Consumer home improvement spending is projected to grow faster than professional spending in 2026, a reversal from 2025.

Consumer spending fell 1.7% in 2025 but is projected to rebound 3.7% in 2026, per HIRI's U.S. Home Improvement Products Market Forecast. Professional spending moved the opposite direction, surging 6.9% in 2025 before growth cools to just 1.0% in 2026 by current forecasts.

The remodeling industry's future outlook fell to borderline-poor in Q2 2026, even as current conditions held positive.

The "current" and "future" conditions readings on the NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index both remain above 50. An index above 50 indicates that a higher share of remodelers view conditions as good rather than poor. Still, the future conditions reading slipped from 54 to 52 in Q2 2026, a sign that while remodelers feel more confident today, they are currently feeling less certain about the future.

August 7, 2026

HIRI now forecasts 2.6% growth for the U.S. home improvement products market in 2026, accelerating to an average 3.8% a year from 2027 to 2029.

Construction employment jumped 340% from June to July despite the broader economy losing 23,000 jobs in July.

Consumer home improvement spending is projected to grow faster than professional spending in 2026, a reversal from 2025.

The remodeling industry's future outlook fell to borderline-poor in Q2 2026, even as current conditions held positive.

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