People are remodeling their homes due to skyrocketing prices for new condominiums and the spread of telecommuting.
The renovation trend has shifted its focus on the natural aging of the home and there has been a rise in house-wide overhauls that change the layout and design of rooms to suit particular lifestyles.
A 54 year-old office worker in Tachikawa, Tokyo, who renovated her home last autumn, said I am happy that I was able to refashion my home and give it a likeable, modern atmosphere. My house feels cozier now and I make fewer stops on my way home. The woman, whose oldest daughter attends junior high school, said she began to feel cramped in the condo she bought 10 years ago. She considered moving but decided to renovate the property instead as the price of newly built condominiums in the area had soared to more than 100 million.
She doubled the size of the kitchen by incorporating another room, and installed a large, commercial coffee maker. She also installed marble-like new wallpaper and floor panels and hung a chandelier. The renovation cost about 30 million dollars.
An official from the Sumitomo Realty Development Co. said there was a growing demand to be more comfortable when spending time at home. The company believes that remodeling-related sales will increase by 8.7% year on year to 115 billion for the 2023 fiscal year that ends in March.
In the last fiscal year, orders for home renovations increased by 30% from the previous year to 2.9 trillion, according to the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry.
In the first half of the year, orders exceeded 1.5 trillion, expanding business opportunities for housebuilders and housing equipment companies in the process.
Sekisui House Ltd. has seen an increase in orders for large-scale renovations, including the installation of underfloor heating systems. The construction costs of 5 million or more accounted for 40% of the firm's total orders, and sales in the remodeling business for the fiscal year ending January 2023 hit a new record high of 165.9 billion, according to the company.
In August, TOTO Ltd. launched its Octave washbasin, which allows hands-free water-draining and light-switching, and the company has reported brisk sales of the product.
Many people want to update their domiciles to create a workspace in connection with telecommuting, according to Sumitomo Realty Development. More people started keeping pets during the COVID-19 epidemic, and living in tri-generational homes, leading to increased demand for large-scale renovations.
Since the outbreak, there has been a reassessment of the value of homes and a growing trend toward renovation wherein consumers can adapt their living spaces to suit their own tastes and preferences, said Akira Daido, group manager of Nomura Research Institute Ltd. This demand is expected to grow steadily in the future.