California Ranks #4 as Its 49-Year-Old Homes Force Homeowners to Borrow $189,869 Per Renovation

3 Key Takeaways

1. California ranks #4 in the nation with a Renovation Pressure Index of 79.99 out of 100, which is 32.2% above the national average of 60.53. It trails only New York, Massachusetts, and Hawaii, and leads every one of its bordering states by a wide margin.
2. The median California home was built in 1977, making it 49 years old and 4.3 years older than the national median of 44.7 years. Structures of that era demand continuous capital investment in roofing, siding, electrical, plumbing, and seismic-readiness systems.
3. California homeowners borrow an average of $189,869 per renovation project, which is 75.9% above the national average of $107,945, the second-highest per-borrower figure in the country after Hawaii. The state collectively generates $23.23 billion in annual home improvement lending, accounting for 16.5% of the entire national total, the largest share of any state.

California has always been a state of reinvention, but for homeowners across its 163,000 square miles, that reinvention increasingly takes the form of unavoidable structural renovation. From the postwar ranch homes of the San Fernando Valley to the mid-century bungalows of the Bay Area and the stucco-clad subdivisions of Southern California, the state's housing stock is aging into an era of major capital expenditure. Earthquake retrofits, outdated electrical panels, deteriorating roofing, and decades-old plumbing are no longer optional repairs but structural necessities, and the cost of addressing them in California's high-priced labor and materials market is among the steepest in the nation.

This analysis was done on behalf of Besroi Roofing & Siding, a family-owned exterior contracting company serving Western New York since 1960. Researchers analyzed home improvement loan originations from the CFPB's HMDA database (2020 to 2024) and median housing construction year from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (Table B25035) to produce a composite Renovation Pressure Index for all 50 states. The index weights housing age at 60% and average per-borrower renovation lending at 40%.

California at a Glance

California State Renovation Profile vs. National Benchmarks

Where Aging Homes Drain Homeowners' Wallets the Fastest

Top 10 States by Renovation Pressure Index

California holds the fourth-highest Renovation Pressure Index in the country at 79.99, trailing third-ranked Hawaii by just 0.30 points. Its per-borrower loan average of $189,869 is the second-highest among the top 10 after Hawaii, reflecting the compounding effect of aging housing stock, a high-cost labor market, and some of the most expensive building materials in the continental United States.

California vs. Its Neighbors

California vs. Bordering States: Renovation Pressure Index with Gap

No state bordering California comes close to matching its Renovation Pressure Index. Oregon, the nearest competitor, trails by 18.02 points, while Arizona and Nevada fall behind by 28.05 and 31.24 points, respectively. 

California vs. the Nation's Lowest-Pressure States

California vs. Bottom 10 States: Renovation Pressure Index with Gap

California's Renovation Pressure Index of 79.99 exceeds last-ranked Arkansas by 33.07 points, the widest gap recorded against any bottom-10 state. The bottom 10 states carry an average home age of just 34.8 years, and their homeowners borrow an average of $90,103 less per renovation project, reflecting both newer construction and significantly lower regional construction costs.

Methodology

This study analyzed two federal datasets to produce a composite Renovation Pressure Index for all 50 U.S. states. Home improvement loan data was sourced from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) database for the years 2020 to 2024, filtered by loan purpose (home improvement) and aggregated at the state level to calculate the average annual number of originations and the average loan amount per borrower. Median housing age was derived from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey, Table B25035, by subtracting each state's median construction year from 2026. The composite index weights the Home Aging Score at 60% (60 of 100 points) and the Renovation Spending Score at 40% (40 of 100 points), with each component normalized so that the highest-value state receives the maximum score. The 60/40 weighting reflects the outsized role that structural aging plays in long-term renovation demand compared to borrowing levels, which are more sensitive to short-term market conditions. All 50 states were ranked in descending order by their composite Renovation Pressure Index score.

Data Sources

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (HMDA)

Home Mortgage Disclosure Act Data Browser, Home Improvement Loan Originations, 2020 to 2024

https://ffiec.cfpb.gov/data-browser/data/2024?category=states&items=AL&loan_purposes=2&getDetails=1 

U.S. Census Bureau

American Community Survey, Table B25035, Median Year Structure Built

https://data.census.gov/table?q=Table+B25035&g=010XX00US$0400000 

Research Dataset

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-3SwPbgPgSG3HnQWS4iwYXWTUoIP-Z_ERd6z3s9Z7lg/edit?gid=0#gid=0 

Study by: https://besroiroofing.com/ 

About Besroi Roofing & Siding

Besroi Roofing & Siding is a family-owned exterior contracting company serving Western New York since 1960. Specializing in roofing, siding, gutters, windows, and doors for residential and commercial properties, the company provides expert guidance on housing maintenance and exterior renovation across the region.

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