One-Third of 2017 Renovation Spending Paid With Credit Cards

More than a third of 2017 renovation spending was done on credit cards, despite the fact that Americans currently have the most home most home equity in history.

MarketWatch reports that the 2017 total of 36.4 percent is up from 29.5 percent of renovation spending on credit cards in 2011, and has grown steadily each year in between. Eighty-five percent of survey respondents still use cash and savings to pay for renovations, but only 15 percent reported using a secure home loan, far less than used credit cards.

What may be more surprising is that those who use cards for these large transactions aren’t focused on rewards. Among the top reasons owners gave for using a credit card rather than other financing methods, “quicker access to funds” was the biggest, at 38%, while “better rewards” only accounted for 25%.

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