Remodeling Market Index Up Year-Over-Year Despite Supply Chain and Labor Availability Headwinds

The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) / Royal Building Products Remodeling Market Index (RMI) posted a reading of 87 in Q3 of 2021, up 5-points from Q3 of 2020. The HMI reading of 87 is a sign of positive residential remodelers’ sentiment for projects of all sizes.

The RMI is based on a survey that asks remodelers to rate various aspects of the remodeling market “good,” “fair,” or “poor.” Responses from each question are converted to an index on a scale from 0 to 100, where an index number above 50 indicates that a higher share view conditions as good than poor.

The RMI notes that there is strong demand and continued optimism in the residential remodeling market, despite the fact that supply constraints are severe and widespread. For example, well over 90% of remodelers in the Q3 2021 RMI survey reported a shortage of carpenters. And 57% of remodelers reported having slightly raised prices for projects over the last six months. Another 28% indicated a significant increase in price, due in part to higher material costs and ongoing strong demand. Half of these remodelers reported some pricing out of demand due to higher prices for remodeling projects.