Steady Rise in Remodeling Reflects Ongoing Interest in Home Improvements at Financial Website DIYORNOT.COM

    ST. MICHAELS, MD, February 22, 2012 /24-7PressRelease/ -- According to the National Assn. of Home Builders, the recent Residential Remodeling Index rose to its five year high, good news for the industry that indicates homeowners are investing in their property. Compared to the boom years of larger than life additions and lavish kitchens, today's improvements are more modest in scope and focus on maintenance work that keeps a house and its systems in good working order.

Gene Hamilton, co-founder of www.diyornot.com has seen the same practical approach to improvements and continued homeowners' interest in maintaining their property. "It's not that different from 25 years ago when we began writing about the cost of home improvements," he said, "when people considered their home their largest investment and treated it like one." He and wife Katie bought and improved "handyman specials" for resale and are authors of 20 home improvement books, including Home Improvement for Dummies . They developed a weekly newspaper column "Do It Yourself Or Not" focusing on the cost of home decorating, repair and remodeling projects that compares the do-it-yourself cost with the cost of hiring a contractor. First published in 1987 the feature continues today in newspaper syndication and online as a popular website www.diyornot.com, considered "one of the best money web sites" by CNN Money. Its longevity stems from helping homeowners make an informed decision about the cost of a job and knowing what's involved.

DIYORNOT.COM features an extensive database of the cost of more than 375 projects that generates a regional cost when a user enters a zip code. The Pro Cost of a project which includes the labor and material is based on contractors' cost books which are updated annually and the DIY Cost is the price of the material needed minus the labor.

Over the years the cost of home improvements has risen with the cost of living. For example, 25 years ago it cost a handy homeowner $90 to paint a 15-by-20-foot room compared with hiring a contractor for $238. Today those numbers escalate to $150 DIY vs. $764 Pro. "What's changed more dramatically than the dollar amount is the quality of paints, primers and tools that make it easier for a homeowner to get professional looking results," said Hamilton.

Another development is the number of retail outlets for home improvement products, many designed for do-it-yourself installation. "There were 75 Home Depots in the U.S. in 1987 and today there are 1,974, that's a dramatic change that offers consumers sometimes mindboggling choices in materials and tools to use." The extensive television programming about home improvements is another change that helps homeowners learn about projects and often be entertained at the same time.

"Even with a substantial DIY savings, some jobs are best left to the pros," says Hamilton. As an example he said that despite a 59 percent saving by refinishing hardwood floors, a homeowner can seriously damage those floors with a power sander that will require hiring a professional to repair and refinish them, negating any savings. He advises that any electrical and plumbing work requiring a licensed professional are always best left to the pros.

The steady rise in remodeling indicates homeowners' interest in maintaining and improving their property, despite the downturn in market value; it is after all, the place they call home.

DIYORNOT.com is the online edition of the newspaper column of the same name, which is syndicated by Tribune Media Services. It went online in 1987 on HouseNet BBS, a bulletin board service that evolved into HouseNet.com, the first home and garden channel on AOL and home improvement website. More information can be accessed online at www.diyornot.com and m.diyornot.com and on Facebook at Do It Yourself Or Not.

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