Rebuilding America: Home improvement projects resume in Lansing area but business is expected to lag

LANSING – Johanna Lubahn wears a mask and apron each morning as she disinfects the showroom at McDaniels Kitchen and Bath.

"I look like an alien," she said with a laugh.

Lubahn, sales manager for the remodeling company, refers to the routine as her "new normal."

It's not clear how long that new normal will last nor is it clear if or when the home improvement industry will return to its old normal.

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Things were looking up for the industry prior the pandemic, with spending on home renovations and repairs expected to grow 3.9% by the first quarter of 2021, according to data from the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.

But, the center's latest figures predict an about-face, with spending falling this year across nearly 50 metropolitan areas. Lansing wasn't among the regions studied, but, in general, the model showed a sunnier outlook in a few smaller and more affordable cities.

Spending by homeowners on improvements and repairs could rise 2% in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming area during the fourth quarter of 2020, while sales are expected to dip 2% in the area of Detroit, Warren and Dearborn.

If not for the pandemic, spending had been projected to rise a full 4% in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming area and to increase by a more modest 1% in the Detroit region.

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For McDaniels Kitchen and Bath, the latest monthly sales figures only reached about 16% of revenue in previous years, said Don Jessup, president of the company that specializes in remodeling kitchens and bathrooms in mid-Michigan.

The company furloughed employees amid Michigan's seven-week shutdown of nonessential construction, but brought its workers back on the payroll when Gov. Gretchen Whitmer lifted some restrictions earlier this month.

Effective May 7, people in the real estate, construction and building trades were allowed to resume work with precautions. Businesses operating in-person, for instance, must screen employees and visitors for COVID-19 symptoms using a questionnaire or, if possible, by taking temperatures.

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McDaniels Kitchen and Bath has been encouraging teleconferencing and phone consultations while requiring customers to make appointments to see cabinetry and other merchandise in-person at the business' Lansing showroom.

Even prior the pandemic, construction was an industry that required physical distance, said Ross Smith, a salesman for RL Rider Remodeling. 

A bathroom remodel, Smith noted, is generally a one-person job with the room sealed off by plastic. Workers are used to wearing masks to fend off dust and fumes.

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Still, it's been difficult to run a business day-to-day amid so much uncertainty about the long-term outlook.

"There's more caution in every decision," Smith said.

RL Rider specializes in higher-end remodeling, and Smith and his brother, Cameron, the business' owner, are weighing whether to shift to a lower price point in response to a tanking economy. 

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The Lansing-based company drew upon its cash reserves and a Paycheck Protection Program loan from the federal government to keep its workers employed at the start of the shutdown, but ended off temporarily laying off employees for several weeks. 

RL Rider's 10 full-time employees are back to work now, Smith said, and there's work to be done. In fact, wait times are longer between signing a contract and starting construction as the company works through a backlog of projects that were paused because of the outbreak.

"The phone is ringing," Smith said. "Optimistically, I'm hoping that people are thinking about remodeling while being locked down. You sit at home all day and you start to notice the things that bother you."

Contact reporter Sarah Lehr at slehr@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahGLehr.

Tips for home remodeling during COVID-19

• Call first before you walk into a showroom or office. Think seriously about what you want and do as much planning as possible online or over the phone. 
• Consider pursuing outdoor rather than indoor projects to allow for greater distancing.
• Because of an industry-wide drop in sales, you might be able to get a better deal on home remodeling. If you're financially secure, consider signing a contract now even if you plan to wait to have the project completed. That way you'll be at the top of the list when business picks up.