The Backlog Boom: 73% of Homeowners Have Projects Waiting

Every quarter, the Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI) surveys a nationally representative sample of U.S. homeowners about what they're doing to their homes, how they're paying for it, and what they're planning next. The Q1 2026 report, based on nearly 1,200 homeowners surveyed from March to April, tells a story that's easy to misread: the number of homeowners who worked on a project in the last 90 days cooled from 53% at the end of 2025 to about 40% to start the year.

If you stopped there, you’d miss the key opportunity: not necessarily that there’s less work but that there is different work coming from more cautious homeowners who increasingly want a pro in the room.

The single most encouraging number for pros has nothing to do with completed jobs; it's the backlog. Nearly three in four homeowners (73%) say there are projects they want to do but haven't started yet, and 49% have more than one on the list. Meanwhile, 78% haven't even received a quote, and most describe themselves as still “just thinking about ideas,” researching options, or saving up.

That's a lot of demand sitting on the sidelines, held back by cost and timing uncertainty rather than a lack of interest. The pros who win work in 2026 won't be the ones who only show up ready to close. They'll be the ones who engage early, help homeowners scope realistically, and stay top-of-mind through the long “thinking about it” phase. A quick, no-pressure estimate or planning conversation is now a competitive advantage, not a favor.

This is the shift worth noting for your business. Pure do-it-yourself completion dropped sharply, from 50% of projects in Q4 of 2025 to 39% of projects in Q1 of 2026, but so did full contractor hires, from 24% to 15%. If there’s one number in this report that’s worth pausing to consider, it’s this one: the category that exploded was the blended approach. Homeowners doing some of the work themselves while bringing in a pro for the rest jumped from 27% to 46% of projects in a single quarter.

Homeowners are trying to control costs without taking on complexity they can't handle. That opens the door to services many pros don't formally offer: consultations, "we do the hard part, you finish it" arrangements, punch-list help, or phased scopes. Reinforcing this, 62% of homeowners chose to repair rather than replace in Q1 of 2026 (up from 51% in Q4 of 2025). Meeting homeowners where they are—smaller, staged, collaborative work—captures revenue that used to walk out the door as an all-or-nothing decision.

When homeowners did hire a pro, the top two ways they found that pro were having worked with them before (31%) and a referral from friends or family (31%). Together, that's roughly six in ten jobs won on trust and track record. That's where a strong online presence earns its keep. Homeowners without a trusted referral turn to search and reviews first, so your reputation needs to show up before you do.

Homeowners are also hiring for substance, not shortcuts. The top reasons for hiring a pro in Q1 of 2026 were technical expertise (61%), work quality (54%), project size and complexity (45%), and guaranteed workmanship (43%); convenience ranked lower. The takeaway: deliver quality, ask for a review, and stay in touch with past clients. Your best future job is often a repeat or a referral.

When homeowners struggled to find a pro, no single barrier dominated, but several were within pros’ control. Beyond "too expensive" (25%) and "too busy/not available" (21%), homeowners cited trust and transparency concerns (21%), lack of response (14%), long timelines (14%), and communication problems (13%). Fast replies, clear pricing, and steady communication won't cost you much, and they directly address why homeowners walk away. If you haven’t already, set up automated responses to message homeowners soon after receiving a lead.

Cost pressure is unmistakable; 72% of homeowners who postponed or cancelled work cited budget or financial reasons. Yet among homeowners who did move forward, average home improvement spend in the last 90 days actually rose to about $5,368 in Q1 of 2026 (up from $3,702 in Q4 of 2025). Fewer homeowners are pulling the trigger, but the ones who do are investing more in fewer, higher-value projects. Financing is stretching to make that happen: cash payment slipped from 57% in Q4 of 2025 to 51% in Q1 of 2026, while credit card use climbed from 27% to 30%.

For pros like you, that means value engineering and flexible payment options matter more than ever. Offering financing, breaking large jobs into fundable phases, and being upfront about where a dollar goes furthest can be the difference between a deferred project and a signed one, and homeowners still look to contractors to guide product choices, with 41% saying the pro recommended products while they made the final call.

The market is more cautious and more selective, but demand hasn't disappeared. Instead, it's pooling upstream and reshaping itself around collaboration, trust, and value. Pros who engage homeowners early, offer flexible and blended ways to work, communicate quickly and reliably, and lean on their reputation are positioned to convert that deferred demand while others wait for the percentage of full contractor hires to bounce back.

Source: Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI), Quarterly U.S. Homeowner Project Activity Tracker, Q1 2026. Online survey of 1,198 homeowners conducted March–April 2026, weighted to reflect the U.S. homeowner population.