Building giants fall: home renos soar as construction companies collapse

Families seeking modern housing are increasingly turning to smaller renovation projects amid the rising number of construction company collapses.

New data from tradie marketplace hipages showed an increased demand in the last month for home improvement requests.

This comes after reports of construction companies collapsing across the country.

In NSW, there was a 40 per cent increase in companies failing in the past year, with construction companies making up the majority of that.

Despite cost of living challenges and consumer confidence deteriorating, homeowners in 2024 are now looking to put money towards their home, according to hipages.

There is an increased demand in home improvements and renovation requests as construction companies crumble under tough economic conditions.

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Close to half of respondents planned to spend an average of $7,000 on renovations this year.

The tradie platform saw an 8 per cent increase in job requests from homeowners in the past year with renovation and repair work growing.

With high property prices and limited new residential projects due to pressure from increased material and labour costs, homeowners are turning to upgrading their current properties.

Hipages found 64 per cent of people intend to do work to their homes in the next 12 months, while three in ten home owners looking to spend an average $3,000 on repairs and maintenance. Berwick in Victria, Kellyville in NSW, and Southport in Queensland were the top suburbs planning renovations this year, according to hipages.

Tradies have turned to starting new or independent businesses.

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More tradies are looking to work independently or start their own small businesses as a result of construction companies folding.

Hipages recorded over 5,000 new tradie sign-ups in January alone, the highest monthly increase in hipages’ 20-year history.

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CEO of hipages group, Roby Sharon-Zipser said tradies can set up their own business while reducing risks associated with big business collapse.

Hipages CEO Roby Sharon-Zipser.

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“Construction companies folding means that creating a new homeland, achieving new home targets and supporting housing affordability, will be challenging to achieve,” he said.

Mr Sharon-Zipser said that despite the construction industry challenges there is still work available for tradies.

“However, the work is still out there and we want to encourage tradies across all industries to make the most of it.”

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