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The Home Improvement Research Institute’s October 2026 economic update says rolling 12-month sales at building materials, garden equipment and supplies dealers reached $520.5 billion in August, the highest level in the 25 months tracked. It also reports rising mortgage rates, falling consumer confidence and persistent contractor challenges, including postponed jobs and difficulty closing new business.
The Home Improvement Research Institute (HIRI) reported that rolling 12-month sales at building materials, garden equipment and supplies dealers reached $520.5 billion in August 2026, the highest level in the 25 months tracked, even as mortgage rates rose and contractors continued to report difficulty securing and completing work. The figures appear in HIRI’s October 2026 Economic & Industry Update, a monthly review of economic, housing and home improvement indicators.
The report puts the 30-year mortgage rate at 6.86% in September, its seventh consecutive monthly increase and highest level since January 2025. The report identifies the rate movement as an important housing-market indicator, but the supplied summary does not quantify how much it affected home improvement spending or project decisions.
Consumer confidence also weakened. The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index fell 7.6% in September to 81.9, its lowest reading in the 25 months covered. HIRI presents that measure alongside sales and housing data as part of its assessment of conditions affecting the home improvement market.
Contractor responses showed a mixed picture. In Q3 2026, 54% postponed or cancelled scheduled jobs, down from 60% in Q2 but above the 30% recorded in Q3 2025. Among contractors reporting sales challenges, 45% cited closing new business, compared with 23% in Q2 2026. The source summary does not provide the survey sample size or further detail about the reasons contractors gave.
Sales Strength Meets Contractor Strain
The numbers show that strong recorded dealer sales and difficult conditions for some contractors can coexist. The $520.5 billion rolling sales figure is a high point in HIRI’s tracked period, while the job-cancellation rate remains substantially above its Q3 2025 level and more contractors reporting sales challenges say closing business is difficult.
For retailers, suppliers and contractors, the combination offers a more complicated picture than the sales record alone. Rising borrowing costs and lower confidence are relevant indicators for housing and consumer decisions, while postponed work may affect project schedules and demand. HIRI’s figures describe these trends; they do not establish that mortgage rates or confidence changes caused the contractor results.
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How HIRI Tracks Market Conditions
HIRI describes its Economic & Industry Update as a monthly report covering general economic data, housing-market data and home improvement market data. It evaluates key indicators and their potential influence on the sector. The October edition, reported by Hardware Retailing on November 4, 2026, brings together dealer sales figures, mortgage-rate and confidence readings, and contractor survey results.
The sales measure is a rolling 12-month total for building materials, garden equipment and supplies dealers, not sales for August alone. HIRI says it is the highest level in the 25 months tracked; the supplied report summary does not give a year-over-year comparison or explain how inflation affects the total. Contractor comparisons are explicitly reported against Q2 2026 and Q3 2025.
Survey Scope and Market Causes
The source summary does not state the number of contractors surveyed, the survey methodology, or whether responses represent a particular region or type of business. It also does not break down the causes of delayed or cancelled jobs, or explain why more contractors reporting sales challenges cited difficulty closing new business.
HIRI’s release reports simultaneous changes in sales, mortgage rates, confidence and contractor responses, but the information provided does not establish direct cause and effect among them. It is also unclear from the summary how the $520.5 billion sales total compares with the same period a year earlier or after adjusting for price changes.
Full Update and Future Readings
HIRI’s October update is the next source for readers seeking the report’s full data, definitions and analysis. The Hardware Retailing article says access to the full update requires becoming a HIRI member. Future monthly releases can show whether the mortgage-rate and confidence trends continue and whether contractor cancellations and sales-closing challenges change from the Q3 readings.
Until those details or later results are available, the figures provide a snapshot rather than a forecast: dealer sales reached a tracked-period high, while several housing and contractor indicators point to ongoing pressure.
Key Questions
What did HIRI report about home improvement-related sales?
Rolling 12-month sales at building materials, garden equipment and supplies dealers reached $520.5 billion in August 2026, the highest level in HIRI’s 25 months of tracking.
How high was the 30-year mortgage rate?
HIRI reported a 6.86% rate in September 2026. It was the seventh straight monthly increase and the highest rate since January 2025, according to the update.
Were contractor job cancellations improving?
The share of contractors who postponed or cancelled scheduled jobs was 54% in Q3 2026, down from 60% in Q2. It remained above the 30% reported for Q3 2025.
What contractor sales challenge increased?
Among contractors reporting sales challenges, 45% cited closing new business in Q3 2026, up from 23% in Q2, according to the source summary.
Does the report explain what caused these trends?
The summary reports the indicators but does not establish that rising mortgage rates or falling consumer confidence caused sales or contractor changes. It also does not provide the contractor survey’s sample size or detailed reasons for postponed jobs.
Source: hardwareretailing.com
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