StoneDimensions

Cambridge, MA – With home sales picking up and contractors seeing more positive business conditions in the future, remodeling activity in the U.S. is in a position to see accelerated growth by the end of this year and into 2013, according to the Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity (LIRA) released today by the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. The LIRA suggests that annual homeowner improvement spending may reach double-digit growth by the first quarter of 2013.

“Warm weather in the first quarter temporarily bumped up remodeling activity in many areas,” says Eric S. Belsky, managing director of the Joint Center. “By the end of the year, however, positive market fundamentals are expected to kick in, moving the industry out of this ebb and flow period and into a new growth phase.”

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As a home design and remodeling company we value our suppliers and we’ve established some great working relationships. I thought it would be helpful if I offered some advice on how stone suppliers can help remodeling companies better serve their clients’ natural stone needs.

Natural stone supply companies sometimes sell directly to consumers, but more often there’s a middle man involved – a contractor, designer, or remodeling company who oversees building projects and helps their clients make important decisions. When it comes to choosing materials, homeowners are faced with hundreds of different decisions and literally thousands of choices for each single material they must pick.

Natural stone suppliers can help consumers by streamlining the decision-making process when it comes to stone slab and tile choices; giving consumers more options that allow them to better work within their budgets; and forming a relationship of trust with the contractors, designers, and remodelers who are working to fulfill a need for their clients.

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