SEATTLE — From Porch:
While the pandemic’s economic effects—including high savings rates, low interest rates, and government stimulus—helped supercharge home improvement spending, investment in such home projects was already up in recent years, alongside more than a decade of rising home prices. But being a DIYer is more conducive in some parts of the country than in others, given that between 80-90% of DIYers report purchasing their home improvement products in-store (as opposed to online). Based on the concentration of hardware, furniture, and appliance stores relative to the population, states in the Mountain West, Plains, and New England regions are the most DIY-friendly, led by Montana at 8.54 stores per 10,000 residents. At the opposite end of the spectrum are Nevada, Hawaii, Arizona, and California with fewer than half the number of stores per capita when compared to leading states.
The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Census Bureau, Zillow, and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. To determine the best locations for DIYers, researchers at Porch calculated the concentration of hardware, furniture, and appliance stores (per 10,000 residents). In the event of a tie, the location with the greater total number of hardware, furniture, and appliance stores was ranked higher. To improve relevance, only metropolitan areas with at least 100,000 residents were included. Additionally, metros were grouped into cohorts based on population size: small (100,000–349,999), midsize (350,000–999,999), and large (1,000,000 or more).
The analysis found that there are 4.92 hardware, furniture, and appliance stores per 10,000 residents in the New Orleans metro area, compared to 4.54 nationally. Out of all large U.S. metros, the New Orleans metro area is the 3rd best for DIYers. Here is a summary of the data for the New Orleans-Metairie metro area:
- Concentration of hardware, furniture & appliance stores (per 10k): 4.92
- Total number of hardware, furniture & appliance stores: 626
- Median home price: $264,185
- Cost of living (compared to average): -3.1%
For reference, here are the statistics for the entire United States:
- Concentration of hardware, furniture & appliance stores (per 10k): 4.54
- Total number of hardware, furniture & appliance stores: 148,375
- Median home price: $344,141
- Cost of living (compared to average): N/A
For more information, a detailed methodology, and complete results, you can find the original report on Porch’s website: https://porch.com/advice/the-best-cities-for-diyers
