So much is happening in the realms of power generation, electronics and technology, it’s easy to overlook that many of these changes don’t always touch the average consumer. For all the hype surrounding solar power, for example, most homeowners have a hard time justifying the cost of an upgrade to photovoltaics. And while electric vehicles may be the cars of the future, we still only see them in the occasional driveway.


However, when consumers are willing to put down money for something, we know that the technology has arrived. There is strong evidence of this in the home remodeling sector. 


According to the Remodeling Market Update released in October 2013 by the Joint Center For Housing Studies of Harvard University, energy efficiency is the most popular type of home remodeling project, with respondents to the survey saying that it comprised 72 percent of their projects over the last year.


While home automation currently only makes up a small portion of remodeling projects (7 percent), that may soon change. Respondents to the survey projected it to be either the No. 1 or No. 2 trend in remodeling over the next five to 10 years, alongside energy efficiency.


Consumer demand confirms these projections. According to the Harvard study, consumer demand for energy efficiency and home automation remodeling projects is at 73 percent and 63 percent, respectively.


Many of the underlying indicators for the housing market are positive, and the Harvard study projected that remodeling spending would exceed $300 billion for all of 2013.