In fact, 62 percent of people responding to the NARI study said that remodeling was prompted by a need to address changing lifestyle and family needs, presumably including those related to aging or disabilities; that’s a higher percentage than those remodeling to increase their home’s market value or to accommodate a work-at-home situation. “Providing control and flexibility appeals to people of all ages,” Stahr says.
In addition to adding inventory that supports universal design concepts, including casement (or crank-open) windows, low-profile door thresholds, and lever-style door handles, cabinet pulls, and faucets (among hundreds more), Stahr suggests that suppliers also stock up on knowledge. “Develop competitive intelligence instead of just products and services,” she says. “Know what [the products] are, how to get them, and the ways they can be used.”
Above and Below Along with stocking more lines of accessible product, dealers should be thinking beyond “traditional” kitchen and bath remodels to the needs of other targeted areas of the home, where remodeling projects are picking up steadily.
In its 2003 Cost vs. Value report, REMODELING magazine (a sister publication of PROSALES) found that a 15-foot-by-15-foot attic remodel, priced at an average of nearly $33,000, gave homeowners a 92.8 percent rate of return on their investment, while an extensive basement remodel averaging almost $44,000 provided an 80 percent pay-back—a better ROI than a master suite or major kitchen remodel, according to the magazine’s annual report.
Basement jobs, in fact, have become remodeler Robert Wright’s new niche. In 2003, Wright Home Improvement in St. Louis completed 35 below-grade spaces, up from 10 the year before, mostly in newer homes. “People want extra living space, but new homes rarely have the lots to accommodate an addition,” he says. Attic jobs are gaining favor for the same reason.
To get a game room, a home theater, wine cellar, a few guest bedrooms with a shared bath, and/or some extra storage within the property lines, Wright and other remodelers are increasingly being called to convert the basement or attic. “Individuals are spending phenomenal amounts of money on remodels as land becomes more valuable,” says John Caletti, CR, president of Caletti Construction in Mill Valley, Calif., which closed $9 million in business last year. “Our suppliers know that in some geographic areas, remodeling is more prevalent than new construction.”
A major component of either an attic or a basement job is windows, providing what Walker sees as an insatiable need among homeowners for brighter and lighter living environments. Walker’s laundry list of products that support that need includes larger windows, more windows, stacked windows, feature windows, skylights, tubular skylights, interior windows, mirrors, and open floor plans that share light from other rooms.
Dealers that recognize the potential for such projects in their markets can secure their remodeling contractor customer base by stocking long-span engineered beams that enable open floor plans (especially in basement jobs), providing the latest tools and materials for staircase construction, and offering foundation waterproofing systems to mitigate below-grade moisture problems.
While most of those products are already inventoried at typical pro-oriented dealer locations, applying them to new and profitable projects such as basements and attics can build loyalty between a remodeler and his supplier. “We’re very loyal to suppliers who are loyal to us,” says Vivona.
Trend Tracker In addition to the obvious demographics driving universal design and land-planning schemes steering an increase in attic and basement jobs, other niche markets are emerging to sustain the remodeling industry.
