The Farnsworth Group recently released the fourth-quarter 2021 results of its Farnsworth Contractor Index.
In creating this index, the Farnsworth Group said it wanted to better understand trending data across various topics of the home improvement market on a quarterly or biannual basis.
The sample for this round of the study included 519 respondents across various construction and remodeling trades within the five industry segments.
Each quarter The Farnsworth Group provides its Contractor Index to the building products and lawn and garden industries.
The group surveys hundreds of residential contractors from five main areas:
- Remodeling contractors (remodelers, GCs);
- Exterior contractors (roofers, siding/window contractors);
- Finish contractors (painters, flooring contractors, carpenters, drywall);
- Mechanical contractors (plumbers, electricians, HVAC);
- Landscape contractors (landscapers, decking contractors, concrete)
On a scale of 1-10, landscape contractors are only slightly less confident in their company’s ability to get new business in the next six months (down to 7.5 in Q3 to 7.6 in Q4).
Those respondents also expect their company's revenues to increase over the next 12 months—more than half forecast a 21-30% growth.
Respondents also reported remaining challenges hiring skilled labor over the last 12 months.
In Q2, only 38% of landscape contractors said they experienced those difficulties. That number hit 51% last quarter and shot up to 66% in Q4.
Those surveyed were also asked about the governmental policies, the economy and other factors that may or may not impact their businesses.