More Than Money: The Rise of Joy-Driven Renovations
Morgan Olsen•Thumbtack’s Home Design Expert•Last updated Apr 17, 2025
Last updated Apr 17, 2025
Table of Contents
- Joy is the new ROI: Why homeowners are prioritizing happiness over resale.
- Homeowners are willing to spend — even without a ROI.
- The top 5 home projects that spark joy (and why they’re worth it)
- The trade-offs homeowners are willing to make for their dream spaces.
- What’s holding homeowners back? (And how to bridge the gap between vision and reality)
Which matters more: improvements that might increase your home’s value for a future buyer or projects that bring more joy into your day-to-day life? Conventional thinking tends to place dollars ahead of delight. But at Thumbtack, we know making a house feel like home isn’t just about maximizing return on investment — it’s about creating a space for everyday life moments.
We surveyed 1,000 homeowners to answer: Are homeowners renovating to see financial returns or to experience joy?
The consensus was clear: with unpredictable market conditions, homeowners are prioritizing long-term happiness over resale value — and they’re turning to the experts to make their visions a reality. A full 84% of homeowners prioritize projects that bring happiness over dollars — including 68% of those planning to sell.
So, what does it mean to prioritize happiness over financial return? Here’s what we learned.
Joy is the new ROI: Why homeowners are prioritizing happiness over resale.
Homeowners are living in the moment. More than three-quarters (76%) are designing their homes for themselves, not for future buyers. That makes sense; shouldn’t something as personal as your home reflect your own tastes and desires, not those of a hypothetical stranger?
When asked what led them to put happiness ahead of return on investment, homeowners expressed a range of attitudes: About one-third (32%) plan to stay in their home for the long haul, while nearly as many said that they want to simply enjoy their space, or that they prioritize joy because they spend so much time at home (25% each). The common theme: a home is an experience, not just an asset.
For homeowners who are planning to stay for the long haul, this sentiment of enjoying their home isn’t surprising, but it also isn’t unique to this demographic. In fact, 63% of homeowners who are currently looking to sell their homes are still prioritizing projects that bring joy to their lives rather than projects that attract future buyers.
Homeowners are willing to spend — even without a ROI.
Homeowners aren’t just fantasizing about the improvements they’d like to make. They’re willing to put their money where their dreams are — even if it means giving up something else. According to our survey, nearly one-third (31%) of homeowners plan to spend over $10,000 on home projects to increase their joy this year. That’s enough to cover an in-ground hot tub or deck/patio addition, according to data from millions of home projects on Thumbtack.
But would you renovate even if you knew you wouldn’t get your money back through a future sale? We asked homeowners about their favorite “joy-first” projects — the kind they’d still do if they don’t pay off in resale value. The 10 most popular projects range from cosmetic to transformative:
- Interior painting
- Replacing windows
- Installing new floors
- Updating lighting fixtures
- Walk-in closets
- Sunrooms
- Dedicated hobby space
- Inground swimming pool or hot tub
- Built-in bookcases
- At home gyms
And millennials are leading the charge: 43% are willing to take on home projects even without a ROI, more than any other generation. After renting in the past, they want to create homes that they truly love, and value experience-driven spaces over traditional home upgrades. In fact, millennial homeowners are more likely than other generations to find higher enjoyment in projects like pools and hot tubs, dedicated hobby spaces, home gyms, specialty kitchen appliances and outdoor pizza ovens.
The top 5 home projects that spark joy (and why they’re worth it)
Across a variety of projects, enjoyment and quality-of-life continue to be the biggest motivators for homeowners, with 90% of home improvements being done for joy over financial gain. The only exceptions? Roof replacements, new siding, and tennis courts — which homeowners told us they are most likely to tackle for the potential ROI.
But which improvements bring about the most happiness? According to our survey, these were the projects that brought the highest average increase in home enjoyment for respondents:
- Interior painting (+22% home enjoyment) — average job value $2,152
- Installing new floors (+20% home enjoyment) — average job value $3,388
- Adding a pool or hot tub (+16% home enjoyment) — average job value $1,782-$13,239
- Upgrading light fixtures (+17% home enjoyment) — average job value $589
- Building a deck, patio, or porch (+16% home enjoyment) — average job value $10,378
What’s more, our data from millions of home projects started on Thumbtack shows homeowners are already taking action to bring these joy-driven projects to life. In fact, over the past five years, requests for walk-in closet installations have risen over 125%, while built-in bookcase projects are up 89%. Over the past three years, sunrooms are up 79% and requests for hot tub installation have soared 135%.
The trade-offs homeowners are willing to make for their dream spaces.
Homes are becoming the epicenter for experiencing life, and these projects signal a shift in homeowner behavior as they prioritize investments that allow them to make memories at home. Among surveyed homeowners, 44% are currently saving up for future home improvement projects. And what’s more, home improvements have become a central part of budgeting — ranking second to paying the bills and ranking higher as a financial priority than long-term savings, including child education.
87% were willing to make a sacrifice for the sake of a project. The biggest trade offs:
- 44% would ditch food delivery for a year
- 41% would skip vacations for a year
- 37% would give up “treat-yourself” shopping for a year
- 36% would delay buying a new car
Of course, when you’re making that kind of sacrifice, you want to get the most out of your budget. Finding the right pro to help you move forward can make it all worthwhile.
What’s holding homeowners back? (And how to bridge the gap between vision and reality)
Having a vision for your home is one thing. Making it a reality is another matter — and that’s where many homeowners get stuck. More than half (57%) of our survey participants said that they’d invest more in home projects if they knew where to start. In fact, lack of confidence was the biggest blocker for starting a big home project (32%), along with feeling overwhelmed by where to start and finding the right pro (26%).
At Thumbtack, we help homeowners turn joy-driven projects into reality by connecting them with trusted experts who make home upgrades seamless. Through our app, homeowners gain the knowledge to build confidence and receive simple steps to get unstuck and can connect with hundreds of thousands of local service businesses to find the right pro for all of their home projects. That’s especially important for millennials, who insist on finding pros who understand their lifestyle needs and can bring unique, personalized ideas to life. As they move from dreaming to action, homeowners need guidance to make their vision a reality.
Looking to start your own joy-filled home project? Find the right pro for your next project by downloading our free app.
Survey Methodology: This sample of 1000 US adults homeowners (aged 22–65) was surveyed from February 28, 2025 to March 4, 2025. All respondents are the owners of their current primary residence, confirmed by user self-confirmation. DKC Analytics conducted and analyzed this survey with a sample procured using the Pollfish survey delivery platform, which delivers online surveys globally through mobile apps and the mobile web along with the desktop web. No post-stratification has been applied to the results.
Project price estimates are based on data from Thumbtack projects completed between March 2024 and March 2025. Year over year growth estimates are based on almost 2 million requests submitted on Thumbtack between 2019 and 2024. City rankings are based on requests per capita to adjust for population sizes.
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