Also the political situation, but not only: the sad situation of the renovation contractors - voila! Home and design

On video: Huge demonstrations across the country, tens of thousands blocked the Ayalon lanes (Photo: Yotam Ronen, News 13)

Today (Tuesday) the Renovation Contractors Association survey was revealed for the Israelis' official renovation holiday, Passover 2023. As every year, the renovation contractors in Israel answer the hot questions in the industry starting with economic, political issues, trends and demands from customers throughout Israel.

As part of the survey, 817 registered renovation contractors in Israel and members of the Renovation Contractors Association answered the multitude of burning issues in the industry.

From the survey data it is possible to learn first of all about a severe damage to the Israeli renovation industry.

If last year there was an increase of over 25 percent in preparation for the holiday of renovations, this year, according to estimates, there was a decrease of tens of percent.

Over 40% reported a 25% drop, with more than 36% reporting a 50% drop in orders for renovations and work ahead of Passover.

When the renovation contractors were asked if the decline/damage is due to the political protests that have plagued the country in recent months, over 59% gave an unequivocal positive answer.

Eran Siev, chairman of the Renovation Contractors Association, points out: "Unlike previous years, in which the renovation industry recorded a boom of tens of percent during Passover, this year we are reporting a decline of tens of percent, layoffs, stoppages and postponements of work.

The situation today in the industry, just before Passover, reminds me of times of crisis, rounds of fighting and corona."

Most contractors believe that there is a direct impact from the situation (Photo: Uri Sela)

The renovation contractors were asked whether, following the increase in interest rates, there are more requests to renovate second-hand apartments, with over 40% responding that there is indeed more demand on the subject.

Another burning issue that came up in the survey was the question - is there an increase in requests to change internal rooms (increase/decrease) instead of moving due to the cost of living?

Here, too, the answers were very clear.

Over 40% of the contractors answered "yes" to the burning question - people prefer to renovate and change the number of rooms in the house instead of moving to a new apartment.

Another layer that joined us in the past year is the subject of the earthquakes that hit the areas near us, on the Syrian-African fault line.

The contractors were asked what the Israelis want to check following the earthquakes in the risk areas, when here, according to estimates, following the confusion and the desire to check as quickly as possible, opinions are divided.

Almost 30% of Israelis asked to check an option to strengthen the structure after the earthquakes in Turkey, about 28% of the contractors testify to requests for internal repairs and cracks created by the earthquakes, with the list closed by construction and inspection requests with a little more than 21%, and inspection/adding dimension requests to finish with a little more than 19%.

In addition, the Association of Renovation Contractors checked the average cost of renovating an apartment in Israel according to two parameters: average renovation for a couple in Israel and average renovation for a family of 3-4 people.

On the question of the average renovation cost for a couple in Israel, opinions are divided, with this statistic capturing most of the attention: over 34% of couples in Israel carry out renovations ranging from NIS 50-100 thousand according to the contractors.

According to the survey, families with no more than four people in the same house end up with renovations of between NIS 125-200 thousand, with over 31% of the contractors testifying to this.

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Beyond the burning economic questions, the second part of the survey talks about the hot trends in the industry of the requested room, smart home, coverings, exterior renovations and also how the earthquakes affected the fear of Israelis in the risk areas and what are the strangest requests that arrived at the door of the contractors in the past year.

In terms of trends, again this year the most requested room for renovation by Israelis is the bathroom, with over 43%, followed immediately by the kitchen area with close to 24%, followed by the bedroom with a little over 20% and finally the children's room with A little more than 12%.

With the high cost of living also comes the creative solutions that have gained momentum in recent years - the coverings.

In recent years, Israelis have been choosing the various cladding solutions for walls, kitchens, for renovation, for design, and more.

According to the survey of the Association of Renovation Contractors, the most requested covering for Passover by Israelis is the famous brick covering, with over 33%, followed immediately by concrete covering with a little more than 28%, wooden covering with 23 and a half percent, and wallpaper closes the list with almost 15%.

With the coming of spring, Israelis like to update their homes with paint, and as a result, we will also examine the most requested color by Israelis for the upcoming Passover, when the expected first place is occupied by the color white with over 51%, followed by the color cream with a little More than 24% and then comes the gray color with 19%.

The list of the four most wanted is closed by light blue color with a little more than 5%.

Not an easy year.

Eran Siev (Photo: Yanai Ditch)

The demands for exterior renovations came back to us with a storm during the Corona, when again this year the renewal of decking/flooring takes the first place with a little more than 45% of the demands, with the pergolas coming right after for the summer with almost 31%.

The list is closed by outdoor kitchens with 13.5% and preparations for pools/jacuzzi with a little more than 6%.

The trends are closed by the question that has been added to the association's surveys in recent years with the increase in the demand for home technologies and a smart home, with the renovation contractors testifying that there is no substantial change (56%) in Israelis' requirements for turning the home into a smarter home.

And with all the tense situation in the country, the Association of Renovation Contractors chose to add another bonus question to the annual survey - the strangest and most delusional requests encountered by the renovation contractors in front of the Israelis.

A renovation contractor from the south tells us that in one of the moshavs in the south of the country, one of the owners of the land asked him to check the possibility of setting up an atomic shelter in the house.

A renovation contractor from the Sharon region shares a story about an elderly woman who asked to turn the guest bathroom at home into a "food pantry", because she claimed the room was not being used.

A renovation contractor from the Haifa area said that at the time of signing the contract he discovered that the client wanted to add a clause that a renovation of NIS 100,000 would be spread over a total of 10 years. Little ninja facilities in the parents' closet.

And finally, the Israeli contractor told about the southern client's vision of a home theater with a big screen in the bathroom and shower room,

The conventional renovations step also had illusory requests (Photo: ShutterStock)

Chairman of the Renovation Contractors Association, Eran Siev: "From this year's survey we can learn that we, like many entities in the country, are in a crisis.

Whereas in the periods before Passover we got used to sharp increases in demand and work, this year this Passover we are forced to deal with layoffs, stoppages of work, lack of orders and financial difficulties." Siv also added that: "The renovation industry has been going through

upheavals since the corona virus, and this Passover we learn that after two years that we thought that the industry had returned to full normalcy and that there was still a long way to go.

Over the years we have learned first hand that the industry is greatly affected by the situation in the country and it is very evident from the survey that the political protests and the cost of living directly affect the Israeli customer and the renovation contractor.

It's time to wish a happy Passover to all of Israel.

With the end of the holiday we will gather and think about actions and steps in order to get the industry back on the right track by the end of the calendar year."

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