Americans will spend more this year on home repairs than they've spent in a decade, according to a report released this year by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.
The report projects expenditures of nearly $340 billion for home renovations and repairs for 2018. That's about 7.5 percent more than spent in 2017. The study says the increase in sales results from a strong housing market and people trying to rebuild after Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria nearly devastated Texas, Puerto Rico and other parts of the southern United States in 2017.
In Tennessee, homeowners spent an average of about $6,200 on home repairs in 2017, according to the National Association of Home Builders.
Local retailers want to capitalize on the spending trends. That's why nearly 300 vendors amassed at the 52nd annual Tri-State Home Show two weeks ago. Their booths, often elaborately outfitted, gave visitors a glimpse of what's available for their home-improvement needs.
Here are five trends we noticed.
UPSCALE LANDSCAPING
Looking for more at-home recreation with the family? Barrett Fischer says his company specializes in transforming flat, boring backyards into outdoor destinations that encourage more family time with "rooms" for various activities.
"Before we get to a house, the normal backyard is simple. There's no real multiple elevation," said Fischer, who co-owns Fischer Landscape Co. with his brother Reynolds. "Once we come onto the yard, we can create separate dining areas from living spaces to entertainment spaces. It kind of tears off some of the outdoor living space to more like a room, like different rooms in a house."
The idea, explained Fischer, is to make the yard an intimate space with the family. Their booth included the facade of a house with stone steps leading to a bright red door. Trees, shrubs and flowers lined a sidewalk made of interlocking pavers and illuminated by strings of Edison bulbs.
Their inviting display showcased some of their specialties, including irrigation, lighting and hardscaping for new home construction or renovation of existing landscaping. Both brothers have landscape degrees and together more than 30 years' experience in the field.
STORAGE SHEDS
The rich, warm smell of wood drew visitors to the Affordable Cabins & Sheds booth, where 17-year-old Jewelia Fox advocated wood's benefits to potential customers.
The Cleveland-based company, owned by her father, Marty Fox, makes wood sheds and storage rooms. Rather than prefab storage buildings, the company builds sheds from the ground up.
"This is our banner building," she said of a 12- by 20-foot structure. "It's $3,300, and we build on your site."
There are no extra fees, hidden costs or taxes attached to that total, Jewelia explained.
You cut out the delivery driver, and you cut out the lot for selling the building, and we bring it right up to your site and we can level it. It's built better than a home, she said. Customers may even have a window installed.
It comes with a 50-year warranty on siding and flooring and a 25-year warranty on the asphalt roofing shingles.
Though traditionally used for storage, such buildings are becoming popular with homeowners looking for project space, especially women looking for privacy with "she sheds" for gardening, yoga, crafts or other pursuits.
METAL ROOFING
Old-timers may like the sound of rain on a tin roof, but Ethan Averett, a Cleveland-based Best Buy Metals salesman, said there are better reasons than nostalgia for metal roofing.
Metal roofing offers longevity, he said. It's a longer-lasting roofing system. Metal roofs resist hail a lot more than traditional asphalt shingles. And the roofs comply with Florida's strict Miami-Dade building codes, the highest rating possible, designed to protect structures from wind-borne debris in high-velocity hurricane zones.
And unlike the rust-prone silver-colored tin once used, today's metal roofing comes in an array of colors and weatherproofing.
SHAPABLE POOLS
Carl Stiggins of Custom Swimming Pool & Spa Design Sales in Chattanooga said the lifetime warranty that comes with Gunite in-ground pools is one of his products' biggest selling points.
"Gunite in-ground pools are built to last a lifetime, to withstand the soil conditions that we have in the Chattanooga/North Georgia area," said Stiggins who markets the pools with co-worker Ashton Walk.
It's a real lifetime, not a manufacturer's lifetime that ends after 10 years, Stiggins explained.
"For as long as you own the pool, it will last," he said.
But their adaptability also wins over homeowners. Gunite in-ground pools may form to any shape or size so customers will not need to redesign landscaping to fit the shape of the pool, he said.
The price varies, but a good-quality Gunite in-ground pool starts at about $50,000, he said.
SURPRISE FINDS
Big-box stores have their place for building supplies, but homeowners looking to avoid cookie-cutter trends are often open to specialty stores, which may charge premium prices, or salvage companies, where the treasures are harder to find but one-of-a-kind.
Southeastern Salvage manager Frank Nolze touted his store's eclectic mix of goods.
"We're selling everything: flooring, tile, home decor, furniture, linens, rugs, bathroom and vanity fixtures," he said. "We want to let new people know we're here."
His booth included bookshelves, tables and chairs, sofas, accent pillows and even Buddha statues, mirroring the merchandise at his Lee Highway store.
Contact Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.