Photos by Eric Brady | The Roanoke Times

A fiberglass pool attracts attention Friday outside the Salem Civic Center's Home Show.

Ronnie and Shirley Wray look at a window display.

People stroll around the Salem Civic Center on Friday at the Better Home Expo. More than 190 vendors set up booths.

When you can't afford to buy, fix up.

That's what homeowners may be thinking nowadays, at least according to some local home-remodeling companies.

"More people are interested in doing stuff to their homes than going out and getting a new one," said Aaron Routt, who works for his family's company, Routt Building & Remodeling in Salem.

Calls to Routt's company for inquiries about everything from kitchen remodels to basement finishes haven't let up -- despite slowing home sales and lagging consumer spending nationally.

Routt's finding contradicts a national economic indicator.

Remodeling activity is expected to be sluggish through 2008, based on a report by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University.

It predicts that spending by homeowners on renovations will decline by a rate of 2.6 percent through the third quarter of this year. The center blames tight credit standards and waning consumer confidence on the lag.

"Fewer home sales and falling home prices are dampening interest in spending on home improvements," said Nicolas Retsinas, director of the center, in a news release.

Still with high hopes, more than 190 vendors -- including kitchen remodeling, window replacement and landscaping businesses -- have set up shop at the Salem Civic Center's annual Better Living Expo -- the Home Show -- this weekend.

Through Sunday, they're showcasing the best of what they do and hoping to build sales.

Ed Meyer, who owns Catawba Builders, said he's not sure why his remodeling business has remained steady. Likely, it's because he's doing jobs for regular customers, and "my particular customers have the money," he said.

"I've stayed busy," Meyer added, naming several recent projects, including remodeling a client's basement.

But the home-construction side of his business has seen better years.

Though he's not a large-home builder, Meyer said he hasn't received a single call from a customer requesting a new home construction job in at least a year. Perhaps that's where the true economic impact lies.

"Who it's impacting is who isn't calling me," Meyer said.

The Joint Center's remodeling predictions also don't reflect the sales pace at Bayview Construction Co., a Moneta home-building and remodeling firm that also has a booth at the Home Show.

In the past 60 days, the company has done more than $5 million in remodeling and new-home construction business at Smith Mountain Lake, said Tom Lovegrove, president of the firm.

"We're seeing the gas pedal to the floor right now," he said.

His company focuses on luxury-home building and remodeling. Homeowners who fit into the luxury market "still have money," he said, explaining that the bulk of his work is for homes priced at $500,000 and more.

People's remodeling plans or goals of building their dream home may not be altered by the economy, particularly if they are retirees, Lovegrove said.

"They do things methodically," he said.

That may be true for Ray and Kate Cowling, Salem residents who have a home on Smith Mountain Lake. They're not holding back on plans to double the size of their lake house.

The couple browsed the booths at the Home Show on Friday to get ideas for adding several rooms. They want to create extra space to fit more family members for overnight stays.

"It's a perfect lot," said Kate Cowling of the lakefront property that she and her husband bought in 2002.

But does making an appearance at the Home Show really increase sales for the companies represented? Not necessarily.

Though for some, it's a chance to plant a seed.

Meyer said he had a table at a local remodeling show last year. There he received a lead for a job that eventually produced the bulk of his winter work.

This is his first year at the Home Show, and already in its first hour, his results appeared promising. Meyer held up a yellow notebook.

"Two leads so far," he said.