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appliances. Owners of new construction are more likely to landscape and build patios or decks.

While owners of existing homes completed and planned more improvements. owners of new construction spend more on their improvements. "New home buyers were more likely to hire contractors, which at least partially explains the higher average spending," Miller said. He noted that purchasers of newly-built homes had a higher average income than those who purchased older homes, increasing the likelihood that more high-priced products would be purchased.

Overall, contractors are involved in about one-third of projects done to newly-purchased homes and nearly half of the projects completed in previous homes prior to sale. About 107o of the projects included installers from home improvement retailers.

Regardless of professional involvement, consumers most often purchased the products. Home Depot and Lowe's were cited as source for about three-quarters of those purchases.

Less than lOVa of home buyers used credit cards to pay for improvements; 27o said they used money from a loan or excess mortgage money.