Now that economists are predicting that the worst of the recession is behind us, householders are once again becoming enthusiastic about renovating their homes. The National Association of Home Builders predicts a 20percent increase in spending on improvememts this year. However, the challenging economy has led to changes in the outlook and behaviours of home renovators. Several years ago, people improved their homes, and particularly their kitchens, with the aim of increasing their properties values to achieve a bigger profit when they were sold. Now, however, in the new economy, most kitchen improvements are for the property owners own benefit and enjoyment. Instead of giving their home a makeover only when they come to sell it, more homeowners are investing in their property for the long term, not because they want to sell. Home improvers are also now much more likely to pay in cash and are keen to avoid getting into debt. Therefore, people are renovating their kitchens when they can afford to do so, even if it involves making improvements gradually. Before the recession, more homeowners were using interior decorators to plan their new kitchens. Nowadays, more and more are deciding to do some of the work themselves. By coming up with ideas themselves, property owners only have to pay for the actual construction, rather than having the design costs on top. As a result of the difficult economy, many contractors are also more willing to negotiate their prices. As a result, people are finding that haggling can lead to some good deals.