COVID-19: 5 Easy Home Improvement Projects

5 easy home improvement projects you can do during the COVID-19 pandemic. Simple DIY home improvement projects that homeowners can start on now.

The past four months have felt like four years. Most of us have spent more time at home than ever before, and are quite sick of our four walls, floor and ceiling. Is it time for an easy home improvement fix?

Until we get a COVID-19 vaccine, we better get comfortable staying put. More than half of homeowners are using their free time (admittedly, some have more free time than others) to polish up their surroundings, according to research by ANGI Homeservices. Nearly 60 percent of homeowners have tackled a home improvement project on their own this year and 80 percent are planning on taking on more home projects, both on their own or with the help of a hired professional.

The most popular home improvement projects homeowners are working on during the coronavirus pandemic are also some of the easiest. That’s good news for all home-bound homeowners.

5 Easy Home Improvement Projects You Can Do During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Here are five easy home improvement projects that homeowners are tackling during the COVID-19 pandemic:

1. Improve Your Outdoor Space

Over 60 percent of homeowners worked on their garden, patio, or improving the appearance of the exterior of their house during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to research by Porch. Power washing the deck, installing garden pavers or patio lighting, adding new plants to the garden and shaping foliage are all simple projects that can help you get some fresh air and further enjoy your outdoor space.

2. Add a Fresh Coat of Paint

Painting is one of the most popular DIY (do-it-yourself) home improvement projects and it’s something the whole family can help with, from the process of picking out colors to prepping the space and picking up a paintbrush. Just over half of homeowners completed a painting project during the pandemic. Painting is relatively inexpensive when compared to other home renovations but it can make a big difference and really refresh your space.

3. Minor Bathroom or Kitchen Renovation

Nearly 60 percent of homeowners made minor improvements indoors by adding new flooring, renovating bathrooms or upgrading kitchens. In a minor renovation, some items are left in place but the basic footprint of the space is maintained. For example, existing cabinets may be left in place, and only the flooring and fixtures are replaced, or vice versa. In a minor bathroom or kitchen remodel, plumbing typically isn’t moved and some appliances might be kept and reused.

4. Install Smart Tech

More than 40 percent of homeowners installed new smart technology in their homes during the coronavirus pandemic. Homeowners installed security cameras, smart lighting, smart doorbells, home assistants and touchless fixtures. Most of these technologies can be linked to an account via WiFi, making them easy to monitor. Smart technology can be used to make your home safer or to improve the functionality of things like lights, thermostats, doorbells, ovens, sound systems and garage doors. And, don’t underestimate the added benefit of being able to post clips on your social media accounts.

5. Make Your Home More Environmentally Friendly

Homeowners are increasingly prioritizing eco-friendly home improvements. Approximately 30 percent of homeowners made an eco-friendly home improvement during the coronavirus pandemic such as putting up solar panels, starting a compost bin and installing solar-powered water heating systems or eco-friendly appliances.

“For my birthday this year, my family gave me an organic keyhole garden. We took down an old swing set that was falling apart, and spent a weekend putting it together,” said ThinkGlink.com publisher, Ilyce Glink. “The keyhole concept offers a compostable center, which winds up feeding the garden without creating any smell. The only problem is the birds, squirrels and other ‘visitors’ to our new keyhole garden tend to get to the produce before we do.”

Climate change urges us all to be more conscious of our carbon footprint and there are many simple home improvements we can make to lessen our negative impact on the environment.

How the Coronavirus Pandemic Is Weighing on Remodeling Spending

“The remodeling market was buoyed through the early months of the pandemic as owners spent a considerable amount of time at home and realized the need to update or reconfigure indoor and outdoor spaces for work, school, play, exercise, and more,” said Chris Herbert, Managing Director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies. “However, sharp declines in home sales and project permitting activity this spring, as well as record unemployment, suggest many homeowners will likely scale back plans for major renovations this year and next.”

The latest Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) released by the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS) of Harvard University projects annual declines in renovation and repair spending of 0.4 percent by the second quarter of 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“As the pace of do-it-yourself activity, maintenance work, and exterior-focused projects begins to taper, annual expenditures by owners for home improvements and repairs are expected to shrink slightly to $326 billion by the middle of 2021,” offered Abbe Will, Associate Project Director in the Remodeling Futures Program at the Center. “Given the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the broader impact of the pandemic, the timing on when we’ll reach a bottom in the remodeling market also remains unclear.”

COVID-19: 5 Easy Home Improvement Projects