Spring and summer offer homeowners a prime window to check home renovation projects off their list. This year, however, President Donald Trump’s trade wars and tariffs are throwing a wrench into their budgets.
It’s hard to peg tariffs with any real certainty due to the Trump administration’s seesaw approach to trade negotiations. But as of May 12, consumers faced a total average effective tariff rate of 17.8%, the highest since 1934, according to The Budget Lab at Yale University. Although country-specific tariffs have fluctuated in recent weeks, remodelers reported that suppliers have hiked material prices by an average of 6.9% since January due to tariffs, according to survey data from the National Association of Home Builders.
Remodelers either have to pass that on to customers, or they have to “eat it” and take a reduced profit, says Paul Emrath, NAHB’s vice president of survey and housing policy research. “But the profit margin isn’t usually that big to start out with,” Emrath notes.
While tariffs affect only about 7% of materials used in residential renovation projects, according to NAHB data, certain home projects will see steeper price jumps than others. Here’s what homeowners need to know.
[Read: 12 Home Improvements That Don’t Add Value]
4 Remodeling Projects That Will Be Impacted by Tariffs
1. Kitchen and Bath Remodels
and bathroom renovations typically have a higher price tag than other remodeling projects, especially if you’re redoing them from scratch. The average kitchen remodel costs approximately $27,000, while the average bathroom remodel costs around $12,000 nationally, according to HomeAdvisor and Angi.
“If it’s a big project that’s going to take months to complete and you have to buy a lot of different kinds of materials — those are the ones that are most uncertain and likely to be affected,” Emrath says.
Tariffs on appliances manufactured in Mexico or those containing Chinese components are already seeing price increases, and metal fixtures (think sinks and faucets) are also affected, says Nicole Goolsby Morrison, president of Red Ladder Residential in Raleigh, North Carolina, and chair of the NAHB Remodelers Council.
2. Major Room Additions
Any project requiring structural work will likely see cost increases because those projects usually involve lumber, steel and other imported items from overseas. Jim Marino, CEO of Georgia-based Pinnacle Home Improvements, notes that “if you’re doing a room addition, a major remodel, because there are just so many components that are involved, you’re going to get components that are coming in from overseas.”
Large projects — those exceeding $50,000 — typically involve multiroom renovations, two-story additions or whole-house renovations, according to the NAHB. These projects are experiencing the most significant decline in consumer confidence, with NAHB data showing that sentiment drops are concentrated entirely in this category.
“I think any major remodel project is going to be impacted if the tariffs hold,” Marino explains. “If you’re doing a room addition or a major remodel, because there are just so many components that are involved, you’re going to get components that are coming in from overseas.”
3. Lumber-Heavy Projects
Canadian lumber tariffs, currently at 14.5% but expected to move higher later this year, will affect any project requiring significant amounts of wood. Lumber tariffs from Canada, which accounts for about 85% of all U.S. softwood lumber imports — or about one-quarter of the U.S. supply — will likely drive up pricing on wood framing, new flooring or cabinetry projects.
Homeowners who want to jazz up remodeled spaces with new furniture should expect to pay more, too. In a recent Strategic Insights survey of more than 420 home furniture retailers and other related professionals, more than half (53%) said they plan to raise prices in response to tariffs, and one-third (36%) said they’ll wait to see how trade negotiations evolve before adjusting pricing.
4. Projects Using Steel or Metal
Metal roofing and steel beams are particularly vulnerable to higher remodeling costs from tariffs. Marino anticipates metal roofing prices to increase “between 5% and 10% in the next 30 days.” While Morrison notes that her company doesn’t use steel beams often (and usually only when opening up walls), these materials can significantly drive up costs on a renovation, she says.
5 Projects That Won’t Be Impacted
1. Windows
Despite being a significant investment — about $18,000 to $20,000 for 25 windows on average, according to Angi — window replacements shouldn’t see tariff-related increases because they’re mostly produced in the United States.
“It’ll be the normal cost increases that we see, but not a tariff increase,” Marino says of windows.
2. Roofing and Siding
Many exterior projects, like asphalt shingles and vinyl siding, use locally sourced materials. Marino emphasizes that while these remodeling projects might have usual annual market price increases, tariffs won’t play a role because the materials are primarily made in the United States.
As noted earlier, metal roofing is the exception, as steel used in those projects might be imported and subject to tariffs depending on where it’s coming from, Marino says.
3. Landscaping and Pool Installations
“Even if you consider a landscape project or a swimming pool addition, things like that, they’re not going to see the same types of price increases as the interior or add-on projects will,” Marino predicts.
Outdoor living projects involve materials that can be locally sourced, such as concrete, fiberglass, sod, trees and plants. Depending on the size, design and scope of these projects, materials can add up in price, but labor is usually the largest line item involved.
4. Small Handyman Projects
Basic maintenance and minor improvements remain largely unaffected by tariffs, which is good news for your wallet. Emrath suggests that “small, handyman-type projects” and weatherization work shouldn’t see significant price hikes. These items can offer a decent return on investment and extend the lifespan of your home’s everyday components, thereby avoiding the need for costlier replacements sooner than anticipated.
5. Painting Projects
Smaller cosmetic improvements like interior or exterior paint jobs are typically cost-effective, easy ways to spruce up the look of your home. An exterior paint job averages about $3,100, but this varies by location, paint type and home size, according to Angi. Plus, most major paint brands in the U.S. like Sherwin-Williams, PPG and Diamond, manufacture their paint domestically.
[READ: How Long Does a Kitchen Remodel Take?]
How to Manage Pricing Uncertainty
“The first thing is to have a guaranteed locked-in price,” Marino emphasizes. “If you’re going to get a quote, you don’t want something that can be open-ended. I’ve never really seen prices go down over the years; they always continue to go up.”
Going the DIY route is another way to help offset higher material costs, but it’s also important to know your skill limitations — and when it’s better to call the professionals.
Morrison suggests that homeowners be flexible and communicate with their contractor. With so much price uncertainty in the mix, remodelers might add escalation clauses into their contracts, protecting them from major price hikes, Morrison says. These clauses list out how much a project might increase in price, up to a certain limit, due to changes in material costs, she notes.
For those considering projects, timing remains crucial. “Make your selections early so that you know what they are before you start the project,” Morrison advises.
Finally, avoid rushing into poorly planned projects, as this can lead to costly mistakes. Get detailed quotes from multiple contractors, read through your contract terms and communicate frequently with contractors throughout the process to avoid late-project sticker shock.
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4 Home Projects That Will Cost More Due to Trump’s Tariffs (and 5 That Won?t) originally appeared on usnews.com
