Nearly half of Torontonians are renovating instead of moving due to real estate prices

BILLDR

– From overconfidence bias to the effects of the real estate market, new data from Billdr reveals Toronto homeowners’ renovation realities, including sentiments. –

TORONTO, ON–/COMMUNITYWIRE/–Today, Billdr, a home renovation digital platform that supports homeowners with their renovation journey from start to finish, released new data revealing how Toronto homeowners are tackling renovations. Billdr commissioned Potloc to survey Toronto homeowners (93 per cent) and soon-to-be homeowners (7 per cent). The survey found that two out of five respondents (39 per cent) have renovated rather than moved because prices on the real estate market were too high, and one out of five homeowners are drawing on their home equity as a primary source of renovation financing (22 per cent), an increasing trend seen across Canada.

“These insights are not surprising. We’re seeing more homeowners choosing to stay put, invest in their homes, and avoid moving when the market is unstable,” said Bertrand Nembot, CEO of Billdr. “Affordability is a major concern for Canadians right now, whether it’s the recent inflation battles, continued supply chain issues, or the ongoing rise of lending rates. Finding a new home that suits all your needs is becoming increasingly difficult in today’s real estate market, and renovating is one way to avoid that struggle.”

Gathered in April 2022, the study received responses from 300 individuals in the Toronto area. The data focuses on Torontonians’ reasons for renovating their home, preference for renovating over moving, their level of confidence in navigating the renovation process, how stressful they find the renovation process, and more.

The effect of the real estate market on renovations

As the market continues to remain volatile with prices still higher than in years past and limited supply available, Torontonians are carefully considering their options. While four out of ten respondents renovated because prices on the real estate market are too high, 48 per cent amongst 35-54-year-olds, other reasons to choose renovations over moving include:

• Over half (58 per cent) are likely to invest in renovating a fixer-upper to create their dream home.
• One in five (23 per cent) chose to renovate instead of buy because moving is stressful.
• One in ten (11 per cent) renovate because they find there is a lack of supply in the real estate market.

Overconfidence bias and renovations

The renovation process is complicated, tedious, and full of endless options when it comes to contractors, vendors, cosmetic choices, and beyond. However, those who have yet to do a renovation experience an overconfidence bias, with three out of five respondents (64 per cent) feeling very or fairly confident. This confidence increases amongst men while decreasing with groups that have previously completed a renovation:

• Men are more likely to say they are quite confident before completing a renovation than women (50 per cent male vs. 37 per cent female).
• Meanwhile, those who have already completed a renovation project are less confident with one out of seven (13 per cent) saying they are not very confident about undertaking this process.

Beauty is pain: the stressful side of renovations

Home renovations are identified as one of the most stressful life events people can go through, with nearly three-quarters (69 per cent) of respondents expressing that they experienced stress when completing renovations. Renovating is a lengthy process that inevitably can induce stress:

• Three out of five respondents (60 per cent) found it difficult to find a qualified and trusted contractor.
• Over a third of respondents (37 per cent) with previous renovation experience would renovate again but with the right experts. This increases amongst women (42 per cent).
• For those who have completed a renovation, they found managing their project during construction (37 per cent) and finding a general contractor (28 per cent) to be the most stressful aspects of their renovation.
• Over a quarter of respondents (27 per cent) who completed renovations in the last year found the process quite stressful.

“Homeowners need support. There is a steep learning curve when renovating a home, and without doing your due diligence, much can go wrong,” said Raphael Sammut, General Manager at Billdr. “From defining the scope of work and finding a trusted contractor to understanding where your money is going, the renovation process has many moving pieces. We’re here to make the whole process seamless and ensure homeowners don’t have to pay out of pocket to learn things the hard way.”

Billdr pairs homeowners with an in-house project manager to take on the most stressful aspects of a renovation. Alleviating key pain points, the project manager works with homeowners to translate their vision into a detailed scope of work, helps them navigate design and permitting, gathers bids from Billdr’s network of vetted contractors, and provides status updates throughout construction. Billdr is turning renovation nightmares into a homeowner’s dream.

Visit billdr.co to learn more.

About Billdr

Billdr’s mission is to make home renovations simple, transparent, and efficient for everyone. Billdr is an online market network that supports homeowners and general contractors throughout the entire home renovation process. The marketplace platform assigns a dedicated project manager that guides and supports homeowners step by step throughout their home renovation journey. Billdr covers all stages of the renovation process, from the detailed definition of the project, development and review of architectural and engineering plans, cost estimates, selection of a certified general contractor, and project management during construction until the completion of the work. For more information, visit https://billdr.co.

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