Despite Housing Bust, Home Improvement Projects Continue

OAK BROOK, Ill., May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Experts expect a continued housing market bust, but a recent Ace Hardware survey revealed one in four Americans plan to tackle home improvement projects in the next few months and most will spend more than $1,000 this year. Research indicates these improvement projects continue to boom thanks in part to more do-it-yourselfers heading to the Internet (66 percent), engaging their family (49 percent) and asking their friends (46 percent) for time and money-saving help.

The survey also revealed 25 percent of homeowners agree that enhancing the value of their home and improving their quality of life are the primary reasons for starting home improvement projects. More women (18 percent) than men (11 percent) cite wanting a change as a third reason to take on a project.

"People are investing in their homes, but the survey results demonstrate that it's as much about enhancing the value for the future as it is about improving their current quality of life," said Lou Manfredini, a national home improvement expert and Ace's "Helpful Hardware Man". "The trick is to find projects that are both personally and financially rewarding, as well as to understand what you can and cannot accomplish on your own."

Before embarking on any improvement project, homeowners really need to ask themselves if they know what they're doing, have the right resources and can complete the project on time and within budget, explains Manfredini. If the answers to any of these are no, he encourages DIYers to enlist help before starting the project.

"It's really important that homeowners know their limits, because it's easy to let inspiration run wild. Before you know it, you'll be in over your head," he added. When that happens, Ace Hardware's survey revealed an overwhelming majority (76 percent) of men and women will head to other resources for guidance, researching the how-tos or asking for help if they aren't sure how to complete a project. Perhaps surprisingly, the percentage of men who admit to turning to others for help has increased by 10 percent compared to results reported in 2005.

Project Know-How Pays Off

Having reliable resources in your back pocket helps simplify any project by saving valuable time and money. The Internet has taken over the top spot as the go-to information resource for two out of three homeowners (66 percent), which is a dramatic increase from 41 percent reported in 2005. In response to the Internet's growing popularity on the home front, many Web sites have become one-stop destinations with 24/7 access to all the information, how-to advice and merchandise homeowners need.

Every day more than 50,000 unique visitors head to Acehardware.com to figure out the answers to their project needs. The "Projects and Solutions" section includes: step-by-step instruction manuals; interactive project videos that help walk DIYers through everything from simple tasks to more complicated renovation jobs; and a feature that allows site visitors to e-mail Manfredini with their home improvement questions.

Recruit Manpower So Time is on Your Side

Time is one of the first big considerations to any indoor or outdoor project with many homeowners underestimating the time it will take to complete a project. A time management strategy recommended by experts is to make a check-list of all the necessary project steps in advance. Cross-check what you can and can't do and then ask for someone's help on the items that fall outside of your skill set.

Recruiting physical help is exactly what homeowners have in mind, rating it as the top way to make projects (paint and lawn and garden, specifically) less overwhelming. Many homeowners enjoy painting (60 percent) and doing lawn and garden work (54 percent) with someone else.

In addition to the suggestions above, Manfredini also offers the following time and budget insights to keep homeowners on track with some of the top home projects they have on their 2008 to-do lists:

    -- Interior painting - Approx. four hours; $100-200 for standard
       10 ft.-by-10 ft. room
    -- Refinishing/Staining a deck - Approx. two days; $100-$200 for average
       size deck
    -- Planting flowers - Approx. two hours; $250-$500 for average
       30 ft.-by-30 ft. space
    -- Fertilizing the yard - Approx. three hours; $100 for an average
       two-acre yard

For more information, visit your neighborhood Ace Hardware store or go to acehardware.com.

About Ace Hardware

Throughout its 84-year history, Ace Hardware has been known as the helpful hardware store by both customers and communities. In 2007, Ace Hardware was ranked the "Highest in Customer Satisfaction among Major Home Improvement Retail Stores" by J.D. Power and Associates in its inaugural study of the retail home improvement industry. With 4,600 hardware, home center and building materials stores, Ace is the largest retailer-owned hardware cooperative in the industry. Headquartered in Oak Brook, Ill., Ace currently operates 14 distribution centers in the U.S. and a warehouse in Shanghai, China, and its retailers' stores are located in all 50 states and 60 countries. More information about Ace can be found at http://www.acehardware.com.