From hurricanes and wildfires to earthquakes and floods, the number of disaster events has risen steeply in recent years, putting more and more homeowners – and their properties – at risk.
“Unfortunately, climate change and global warming are driving more maintenance and repair projects right now,” Steckel says. “From extreme weather to natural disasters, 42% of homeowners say they have undertaken a home improvement project due to climate challenges.”
In 2023, experts predict consumers will continue making home improvements to protect their homes from these events and make them more resilient in the long term. This might include raising properties located in flood zones, adding hurricane windows in coastal communities or updating landscaping with fire-resistant options, such as hardscaping.
“From California to Colorado, wildfires have been intensifying at alarming rates, and with the high risk in wildland-urban interfaces especially, many homeowners are looking for landscape design that keeps fire safety in mind,” Messner says. “While no landscaping is completely fire-safe, there are design practices that help reduce and slow the spread of wildfire through lots and neighborhoods.”
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