THE Q4 2024 VERISK REMODEL INDEX
Prices continue to increase, but at a slower pace, as the industry braces for the impact of potential tariffs on imported goods and materials.
The cost of home repairs and remodeling in the third quarter of 2024 continued to increase, rising by 3.65% from the fourth quarter of 2023, and 0.83% from the prior quarter according to the Q4 2024 Verisk Remodel Index. Costs set new highs for the past decade, rising over 64% from the first quarter of 2015, and more than 70% since the inception of the index in the first quarter of 2013.
The Verisk Remodel Index tracks costs on 31 different categories of home repair, covering over 10,000 line items ranging from appliances to windows. Data are compiled monthly in over 430 local market areas across the country.
“While the 3.65% annual rate of increase in Q4 2024 was higher than the third quarter’s 3.35% annual increase, this was the second consecutive quarter where repair and remodeling costs across the county rose at a slower pace than the prior quarter,” said Greg Pyne, VP, Pricing for Verisk Property Estimating Solutions. “Fourth quarter prices rose 0.83% from Q3, and third quarter prices rose by 0.94% from Q2. Second quarter costs rose by almost 1.1% from the first quarter, so there’s clearly a trend in place that’s bringing price increases more in line with the rate of inflation.”
Quarterly price increases appear to be driven primarily by labor costs: the two categories reporting the highest quarterly increases – kitchen remodeling, which rose 1.21%, and replacing tile flooring, which rose 1.17% – are two jobs where labor costs comprise a very high percentage of the cost of the job. About 60% of kitchen remodeling costs are from labor, while over 74% of the cost of replacing tile flooring is labor-related.
Another indication that repair and remodeling costs were driven primarily by labor is that the average quarterly cost increase across the 31 product categories included in the report was 0%. Eight categories saw a modest increase, nine decreased slightly, and 14 had no change from quarter to quarter. “Material costs have flattened out considerably over the past year, which has delivered more price certainty for contractors, investors, and property owners,” added Pyne. “But the industry is bracing for some potential price disruption if the Trump Administration follows through on its plans for higher tariffs on imported goods – recent experience with tariffs on Canadian lumber is a reminder of how rapidly prices can rise and fall based on the government’s trade policies.”
Quarter-over-quarter repair and remodeling costs rose more rapidly than inflation, where the Consumer Price Index rose just 0.2% between the third and fourth quarters in 2024, and increased by 2.9% year-over-year.
South Atlantic and Mountain States Have Highest Quarterly and Annual Gains
Once again, all regions experienced cost increases both quarterly and annually. Quarterly increases ranged from a low of 0.56% in the West North Central Region to 1.44% in the South Atlantic Region, where prices were probably impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. All regions experienced annual increases of over three percent, ranging from a low of 3.04% in the West South Central Region to 4.74% in the South Atlantic Region.
“Clearly the devastation caused by natural disasters had a significant impact on repair costs in the Southeastern states at the end of 2024,” Pyne noted. “It’s likely that we’ll see a similar trend in the Pacific Region in the coming months as Southern California attempts to recover from the wildfires that destroyed thousands of homes in January.”
| Q2-Q3 2024 | Q3-Q4 2024 | Q4 2023-2024 | |
| East North Central | 0.94% | 0.78% | 3.53% |
| East South Central | 0.84% | 0.93% | 3.68% |
| Mid-Atlantic | 0.90% | 0.61% | 3.08% |
| Mountain | 1.21% | 0.64% | 3.63% |
| New England | 0.86% | 0.78% | 3.28% |
| Pacific | 0.90% | 0.75% | 3.28% |
| South Atlantic | 1.49% | 1.44% | 4.74% |
| West North Central | 1.17% | 0.56% | 3.56% |
| West South Central | 0.84% | 0.63% | 3.04% |
Southeastern States Have the Highest Rates of Increase
Unsurprisingly, states most directly affected by the recent hurricanes had the highest rate of repair cost increases in the fourth quarter of 2024: Georgia (2.56% quarterly increase), South Carolina (2.17%), North Carolina (1.85%), Florida (1.62%), and Tennessee (1.6%) all had quarterly increases about twice the national rate of 0.83%.
Iowa had the lowest rate of cost increases at 0.45%, followed by New Hampshire (0.47%), West Virginia (0.47%), Arizona (0.51%), and Mississippi and North Dakota at 0.51%.
About Verisk
Verisk is a leading strategic data analytics and technology partner to the global insurance industry. It empowers clients to strengthen operating efficiency, improve underwriting and claims outcomes, combat fraud and make informed decisions about global risks, including climate change, extreme events, ESG and political issues. Through advanced data analytics, software, scientific research and deep industry knowledge, Verisk helps build global resilience for individuals, communities and businesses. With teams across more than 20 countries, Verisk consistently earns certification by Great Place to Work and fosters an inclusive culture where all team members feel they belong. Verisk is traded on the Nasdaq exchange and is a part of the S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq-100 Index. For more information, please visit www.verisk.com.
Contact:
Rick Sharga
CJ Patrick Company
(949) 322-4583
