Financed and non-financed homeowners report the same median household income. The gap shows up in net worth instead, $225,000 for those who finance versus $450,000 for those who don't, suggesting financing lets homeowners with steady income but less accumulated equity take on the bigger version of a project rather than the smaller one.
Siding buyers spend $17,550 on average and finance only 13% of the time. House wrap buyers spend a comparable $15,500 and finance 70% of the time. House wrap is typically sold as part of a larger, contractor-led exterior job where financing is already part of the conversation, while siding is often bought as a standalone material decision without that same conversation built in.
Yard, garden, and outdoor project spend led the increase, rising from $470 to $1,349 in a single quarter. Financing use moving in the opposite direction from cost is not what rising costs would typically predict, pointing to real demand that has not yet found the right financing offer.
This report examines how home improvement financing shapes homeowner and contractor behavior. It draws on HIRI's Quarterly US Homeowner Project Activity Tracker and Quarterly Contractor Business Sentiment Tracker to show where financing use is concentrated, where it lags behind project value, how it relates to project size, and impacts contractor revenue growth. Financial services members can use these findings to identify which homeowner segments, product categories, and contractor partners represent the clearest opportunity for a financing product.
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