Posted by Carmen Isais
Every market gyration has winners and losers, including the current one. In this downturn, some of the winners are:
- Remodeling contractors.The National Association of Home Builders says remodeling sales were $228 billion in 2006, up from $215 billion in 2005. ” As long as they are staying, [home owners] are giving themselves that spa bathroom they always wanted, for example, with a whirlpool tub, shower with body sprays, heated towel rack and coffee station,” says Rick Glickman, president of Dream Kitchens Inc. in Skokie, Ill.
- The auction industry. Nationwide, residential auctions are up 39 percent since 2003, according to the National Auctioneers Association.
- Home Stagers. Those involved in the business are upbeat. “The staging part of my business has doubled since I started it in 2001,” says GraceAnn Simoni, an instructor with Midwest Staging Redesign Institute.
- Appraisers. Appraisers say volume is steady, but the kind of work has changed toward more emphasis on foreclosures and home-equity appraisals.
Source: Chicago Tribune, Leslie Mann (12/14/07)
