URBANDALE, Iowa — A record-low number of homes for sale plus the high prices for homes nationwide have a lot of homeowners choosing to stay put and invest in their homes. Construction crews in the metro say remodeling instead of buying is a booming trend.

The Remodel Home Show took place over the weekend in several cities across the metro with about a dozen remodeled homes on display. Remodeling crews say picking between remodeling and buying a brand new home usually comes down to equity.

“I think that remodeling is a way that people can create their dream home then trying to purchase the dream. It’s more approachable. You can do it in fragments or phases,” says Zak Fleming, the owner of Fleming Construction. “$15,000 or even $100,000 can have a big impact on an existing home but buying your dream home generally costs $300,000.”

Urbandale homeowner Creighton Cox, says when his family bought their house a decade ago it wasn’t their dream house but created a long term plan to turn it into one.

“We bought it at a budget that we could afford after just being married a few years then phased it out. We did the basement in 2011 and did the kitchen this spring. We love the neighborhood and the schools. We wanted to stay here but we knew there were some things we could change.”

Experts say while backyard remodeling is currently trending, kitchen remodels are still the most popular part of the home to be renovated.