In their first ever report into the Australian design and renovation industry, leading home improvement site Houzz.com.au have revealed that Australian homeowners are well and truly renovation aficionados!
Out of the 13,000 people who took part, one in 10 (12%) renovate or decorate their homes monthly and nearly a third (30%) every three-to-six months. The Houzz Australia Report also found that in the next two years, 75% of Aussies plan on decorating their homes and 38% plan on undertaking a major renovation.
Other key findings were as follows:
Colour preferences: While two-thirds of Australians stick to neutral colours for their front doors, a few are daring to go bold with blue (6%), red (5%) and green (5%). Once indoors, after the traditional white, it’s yellow and green that are the most common colours used to decorate the dining room, and blues and purples in the bedroom.
Kitchens on the chopping block: One in four Aussies plan to update their kitchen in the next 12 months (26%), which makes sense given that nearly the same number report that it’s the area of their home that is in most need of renovation (23%). A designer kitchen tops Australian’s wishlists (42%) when given the choice to add any feature to the home, irrespective of cost.
Style by state: Australian homes include a diverse mix of styles, with more than half of homeowners (55%) choosing contemporary and modern styles, followed by traditional (23%) and eclectic (19%). Sydney leads the trend in global influences, as the most likely to pick up Asian, European and Scandinavian styles (17%), whilst Adelaide-residents prefers eclectic and vintage designs for their homes (31%) and unsurprisingly Brisbane-residents prefer tropical (34%).
How eco are Aussie homes? Eco-friendly choices matter to Australian homeowners, including energy-saving lightbulbs (69%), insulation (69%), low flow showers (37%), rainwater tanks (36%), compost (34%) and low flow toilets (33%). Nearly a quarter are even installing solar panels (24%). Adelaide dwellers are most likely to take advantage of natural resources, with 53% choosing to introduce rainwater tanks and 33% installing solar panels. In Brisbane, indoor eco-features lead the way, with homeowners most likely to choose low-flow showers (43%) and energy-saving bulbs (73%) than other Aussies.