If you’re thinking about renovating your home, one of the first questions you’ll ask is: “how much is remodeling actually going to cost?”
The honest answer is that it depends on the room, the scope, and where you live but recent national data gives a clear picture of what homeowners are really spending.
To put the numbers in context, we asked Patrick Szumigraj, owner of PHS Construction, to share his perspective on what these figures look like on real projects.
Here’s what the data says, and how to use it to plan your own remodel.
What Homeowners Are Spending Overall
The numbers vary by source, but together they tell a consistent story.
According to the 2025 Houzz & Home Study, the median renovation spend held steady at $20,000, down slightly from the $24,000 peak in 2023. Spending among the top 10% of homeowners rose 7% to $150,000 in 2025. But it is still a serious investment for most families.
Zooming out, Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies projects that American homeowners will spend about $518 billion on improvements and maintenance by the end of 2026, even as growth moderates from the post-pandemic surge.
Patrick Szumigraj sees this play out locally: “The national medians match what we’re quoting. Most of the bathroom projects we take on land somewhere in that $8,000 and $20,000 range, while kitchens run higher. The homeowners who spend the most aren’t buying luxury finishes, they’re fixing what’s underneath, like old plumbing and electrical, before they ever pick out tile.”
Renovation activity itself remains strong. More than half of homeowners (54%) reported renovating their home in 2025, and 50% already plan to take on a project in 2026, with a median planned spend of $15,000.
What Remodeling Costs Room by Room
Here’s what individual projects typically run in 2025–2026, based on Angi’s latest cost data, with kitchen and bathroom figures cross-checked against the 2025 Houzz & Home Study:
| Room | Typical cost | Common range |
| Kitchen | USD 27,000 | USD 10,000–50,000+ |
| Primary bathroom | USD 15,000 | USD 10,000–25,000 |
| Guest/secondary bathroom | USD 7,000 | USD 5,000–18,000 |
| Basement finishing | USD 22,000 | USD 20,000–50,000 |
| Living room | USD 8,000 | USD 2,500–15,000 |
| Bedroom | USD 5,000 | USD 1,500–20,000 |
| Garage | USD 18,000 | USD 3,000–30,000 |
| Laundry room | USD 11,000 | USD 5,000–20,000 |
| Attic conversion | USD 20,000+ | USD 10,000–75,000 |
| Exterior projects | USD 10,500 | USD 5,000–25,000 |
According to Patrick and the data above we can conclude that Three patterns stand out –
- First, scope drives cost more than room choice. A kitchen renovation can cost less than a home office buildout.
- Second, kitchens and bathrooms dominate budgets at every level.
- Third, conversions (basements, attics) show the widest cost swings because the starting condition of the space varies so much.
How Spending Varies by Generation
Life stage shapes both what homeowners renovate and how much they spend.
Gen X homeowners led with a median spend of $24,000, followed by Baby Boomers at $22,000 and Millennials at $15,000 in 2025, .
Gen Xers and Boomers tend to take on larger whole-home projects, while Millennials more often start with targeted updates.
How People Pay for Remodels
Most homeowners fund their projects without long-term financing:
- 84% used personal savings
- 29% put some portion on credit cards
- 6% tapped a home equity line of credit (HELOC)
Paying cash keeps interest costs down, but it also means your savings are the safety net if the project runs long or surprises come up behind the walls.
What to Budget Beyond the Quote
Here’s the number that matters most when you plan: in 2025, 37% of homeowners exceeded their budget.
That’s not because they planned carelessly, it’s because remodels uncover things no one can see in advance, from outdated wiring to hidden water damage.
A few ways to protect yourself:
- Add a 10–20% contingency to any written estimate.
- Decide early which changes are “must-haves” so scope creep doesn’t eat your reserve.
- Get the scope in writing before demolition begins, so change orders are the exception, not the rule.
Turning National Averages into Your Plan
Medians are useful for setting expectations, but your actual budget depends on your home’s age, your finishes, and how much of the layout you want to change.
National data tells you where the market is; a local professional can tell you where your house is.
Whether you talk to a contractor you trust, start with your goals and your home’s specifics, and build a plan around real numbers not national averages.
