Homeowners Staying Put and Completing Home Projects in 2024

This year, homeowners are less interested in moving and more interested in completing home maintenance, upgrades and repairs, according to a report by home insurance group Hippo.

Compared to their survey in 2022, homeowners are 12% less interested in selling their homes this year and 13% less interested in buying a second property. Homeowners’ main priorities now are home upgrades (29%), home security and safety (32%) and home monitoring and services to help prevent issues (23%).

In the new year, participants said their main concerns were budgeting and financing (39%), home repair expenses (38%), home insurance premiums (26%) and protecting their property from damage (26%).

Expensive home repairs can come as a surprise and eat away at homeowners’ budgets. In 2023, 33% of survey respondents said they budgeted $1,000 or less for repairs, and 46% said they had something unexpected go wrong in their home. The most common home issues were appliance breakdowns (31%), water damage (23%) and roof damage (20%).

Homeowners can save money on repairs and maintenance by completing their own DIY projects when they’re able to. Thirty-six percent of participants said they are tackling their own maintenance and repairs, but 27% said they still struggle to decide whether to hire professional help or DIY it.

Although homeowners’ main focus this year is on maintaining their current homes instead of buying new ones, they reported finding joy in homeownership through completing maintenance and repairs (47%) and learning skills to care for their homes (38%).

The survey found that although homeownership can have its challenges, it continues to be worthwhile to homeowners because it provides control over their living environment (43%), personal pride and fulfillment (38%) and a stable living environment to create lasting memories (37%).