For every negative there can be a positive. For example, high prices have hindered the housing market, but the lack of affordable options has encouraged more owners to stay put and remodel their own homes. 

The trend can be seen in the jump in profits for remodelers. According to a recent study by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), profitability for residential remodelers reached a 30-year high in 2024.

NAHB’s Remodelers’ Cost of Doing Business Study examines historical financial data, including remodeler's income statements and balance sheets, to evaluate industry trends. The 2026 edition evaluates the data through 2024. 

According to the NAHB analysis, the average net profit margin for remodelers was 6.3% in 2024. This represents the highest margin since 1996 and a sharp increase from 2011 when the average margin was only half as much, at 3%.

Gross profit margins followed a similar pattern. According to the NAHB, this figure averaged 29.9% in 2024, which was five percentage points higher than in 2021. That year the metric fell to a record low of 24.9%.

Another sign of the industry’s health is the decline in the use of financing. The NAHB study found that 50% of remodelers used debt to finance their operations in 2024. This was down from 68% 10 years earlier.

The diminishing need to take out loans for business shows a healthy industry. Along those lines, the study found that assets for remodelers are also growing. Total assets in 2024 averaged $668,000, up 34% from $497,000 in 2021.

Concerning a related metric, the NAHB also recently announced that remodeler sentiment is steady, although slightly down in the first quarter of 2026. The NAHB/Westlake Royal Remodeling Market Index, which assesses sentiment about the industry’s current conditions and future prospects, measured at 62 on a scale of 100 for the first quarter of this year. That is two percentage points down from the fourth quarter of 2025, but well within positive territory, which is anything over 50%. The index has held steady in positive territory for the last several years.