00:00 Spokesman a
Lowe’s shares after the more than the expected revenue and the increasing sales of professionals who compensate for the weakness in the consumer of “DIY”. Housing owners continue to spend less on large tickets, albeit against the backdrop of a broader economic uncertainty. The report on the status of Angie’s housing costs of 2025 found that 48% of homeowners were more stressed than home repair than in January. Joining me now, we have Angie Hicks, the co -founder of Angie. Angie, we have to ask you above all where a lot of stress for homeowners comes from?
00:53 Angie Hicks
I think honestly, when it comes to taking care of your home, this is for most of us our biggest asset. And we tend to spend, you know, one to two percent of the value of the home for improvements and repairs every year. So it really comes down to the kind of budgeting and understanding of what should be done around your house and how best to invest these dollars.
01:24 Spokesman a
And so from what you hear, are there huge delays in some of the DIY projects that homeowners usually do?
01:46 Angie Hicks
Well, we conducted a pulse survey to update our home costs in April and saw that 70% of homeowners said they had delayed a project. But I think what you really need to find out here is what it really means. We have also found that they make more support, which is very common, this is a very common phenomena when we see an economic decline or uncertainty. Because what they want to do is not be surprised. They do not want to be surprised by spending, so they will make sure they are their air conditioning so that they do not go out on the hotter day of the year. Make the roof so that they have no leakage. So they just become much more conscientious about these everyday things. And they will make fewer discretional elements, less discretion. So we may not put the pool this year, but we will still make sure we maintain this house. So you see some shifts that happen there, and quite honestly, some of these DIY projects can fall into this discretionary bucket that they can choose to withstand.
03:03 Spokesman a
Yes, at one point we had a perfectly good blasting pool when we got up. So, in the end, just go to a hose for a while. Yes, exactly. So, because you think of some of the alternatives to the lower costs of the full reconstructions, because these are some of the projects that homeowners will take if they want to list their home within the next 12 months, what do you hear on this front? What is the pulse?
04:10 Angie Hicks
Yes, so many times UH kitchens and bathrooms are always at the top of the update list. And you know, many times people think these tens of thousands of dollars projects. Yes, they can be. Some can be very big projects, but there are many things you can do to make it even more efficient UH project economical and get functionality. For example, in your kitchen, if you want a more fresh look, consider updating the countertops. If you are going to avoid updating the cabinets, there are big money and do not change the print of your kitchen, if you can, because if you start moving the plumbing and electric, the price starts to add. The same things in the bathroom. Consider changing the flooring, updating the sink, but if you are going to process your entire shower, it will be more expensive.
05:24 Spokesman a
So how do the pluses on the other side meet what homeowners ultimately signal them, the market, the professionals who also work on these projects?
05:48 Angie Hicks
Absolutely. So professionals work more with homeowners, talking to them about alternatives. You know, I just met our advice of Angie UH Pro the next day. We talked a lot to the pros of the different things that see where they can help homeowners compromise and make good decisions on how to invest these dollars. You know, and they are looking for, and they are also looking for ways they can summarize projects together. Oh, so you know if they offer both windows cleaning and gutters, suggesting that users will do together, so this is a trip and this can be more efficient economic work.
06:53 Spokesman a
What is a decisions tree about whether you really need to start a new project right now?
07:04 Angie Hicks
Well, I want to say, you first need to think about your budget. Look at your budget, find out how much you have to spend. And I also always encourage homeowners to walk around your house and appreciate everything you see, because you can choose to do the wrong project, and we don’t want people to do it. You know, so you want to start with structural problems, then go to mechanical things and then work on your way to a more cosmetic type of upgrade objects. So do this to know, like, hey, my refrigerators on his last leg. Oh, you don’t go and put on a new deck and then realize that come in August, that you have to buy a refrigerator and feel the crunch.
08:05 Spokesman a
Angie, it’s great to see you. Thank you very much for spending time as always.
08:12 Angie Hicks
Thank you.