The Top 2018 Home Trends in Renovation and Design

Published on Wednesday December 6, 2017

2018 home trends.

The New Year is all about improvement—whether it’s finding a new job, kicking a bad habit, learning a new skill or hobby, or completely renovating your living space for maximum comfort and livability.

2017 was a very strong year for home remodeling, and it looks like 2018 will be even bigger. In fact, according a report by Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies, 2018 could be a record year for home renovations.

The Center projects that annual gains in home renovation and repair spending will increase from 6.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017 to 7.7 percent by the third quarter of next year.

“Recent strengthening of the U.S. economy, tight for-sale housing inventories, and healthy home equity gains are all working to boost home improvement activity,” says Chris Herbert, Managing Director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies.

“Over the coming year, owners are projected to spend in excess of $330 billion on home upgrades and replacements, as well as routine maintenance.”

5 home trends for every budget and project

Whether you are building a brand new house, renovating an entire room, or just looking to just make a few updates and upgrades throughout your home, here’s a list of a few of the hottest 2018 home trends.

Color

One of the hottest 2018 home trends is color, according to Houzz, a leading platform for home remodeling and design. After years of safe and neutral whites and grays, homeowners are gravitating towards rich, saturated color in everything from kitchen appliances and cabinets to furniture and decorative items.

This new infusion of color—particularly blues and greens—will be seen everywhere, including walls, doors and even window frames. In fact, Sherwin-Williams 2018 Color of the Year is a deep, majestic teal called “Oceanside.”

Experts suggest homeowners are seeking to create a “cocoon” or nesting effect. “We’re sort of surrounding ourselves with comfort, and one of the ways we’re doing it is through color – to make our homes feel sort of nurturing and tender,” Joa Studholme, Farrow & Ball’s international color consultant, recently told the New York Times.

“Instead of coming into clean, white houses, we’re going into homes that sort of give us a hug.”

Nature

Speaking of greens, Greenery was Pantone’s 2017 Color of the Year and that trend will extend to adding and incorporating plants into 2018 home trends. “While houseplants never go out of style, décor featuring plants will be big in 2018 home design,” said FamilyHandyman.com. “And plants are an easy way to design on a budget and can add pops of color to the space.”

Homeowners are also bringing nature inside by incorporating natural fabrics and wood products into their home design.

“Utilitarian pieces such as lamps and pots for plants are great places for natural wood. Hand-carved wood bowls offer a natural, simple yet powerful element,” interior designer Larina Kase told Realtor.com

Balance

The “hygge” design concept is so 2016. The Danish word for “coziness” took the design and home décor world by storm two years ago, and had homeowners swaddling themselves in chunky knit throws and lighting extra candles.

In 2018, two international design trends will take center stage: “lagom,” the Swedish word meaning, “just the right amount,” and “wabi-sabi,” the Japanese concept of “embracing imperfection.”

Both ideas suggest a return to simplicity and authenticity rather than perfection, and a balance of the old and new—a vintage wooden table surrounded by Eames chairs, for example, would be both lagom and wabi-sabi.

Vogue, MyDomaine and Elle Décor have all declared wabi-sabi, “the design trend of 2018.”

Etsy’s in-house trend forecaster Dayna Isom Johnson told Elle Decor, “No matter your personal style, there is one key factor to nailing this trend for your home design: Find the beauty in the not-so-perfect. Accepting the idea that your home does not have to be showroom-ready is all it takes. Keep it real, be authentic, and be happy that for once you don’t have to make your bed to be cool.”

Patterns and Finishes

Everything old is new again, and that’s certainly the case for 2018 home trends.

Those geometric patterns from the 1960s and 1970s have taken hold of pillows, wallpaper and rugs, according to Pantone’s Color Institute, while big, bold, 1980s-style brass is making a comeback in everything from frames and chandeliers to drawer pulls and finishes in kitchens and bathrooms.

For those doing a kitchen remodel or upgrade, vintage appliances are replacing stainless steel and adding color to our kitchens, said interior designer and blogger, Amanda Gates.

“In the coming year you’re going to start seeing a rise in the popularity of colorful options, vintage options and paneled options. It’s safe to say, stainless is finally on its way out!”

The same is true for granite countertops. Granite is increasingly being replaced by that other 1980s stalwart material—marble. “Just like the stainless appliances that have really overstayed their welcome, granite is finally phasing itself out,” Gates wrote.

Sustainability

Sustainable home ideas.

Going green and living smarter will continue to be home renovation and décor goals in 2018, particularly as homeowners are increasingly choosing to stay in their current, older homes.

That goes for energy-efficient windows, doors and siding, as well as an energy-efficient roofing system. Solar reflective asphalt roofing shingles, such as those offered by Long Home Products, radiate heat far more effectively than a traditional shingle, saving energy and cooling the temperature of your roof.

How will you incorporate these 2018 home trends?

Whether you’re looking to just make a few updates and upgrades to your home or thinking about remodeling an entire room or your whole house, 2018 is a very exciting year for home design.

“We’re seeing our community incorporate these trends in a variety of ways, from smaller decor pieces to larger renovations across price points,” said Houzz editor and writer Mitchell Parker.

“Updating living room or bedroom decor is one way to freshen up your home, but you can also do things like switching out hardware in kitchens (knobs and handles, for example) or adding a fresh coat of paint, which can make a big difference in your home.”