Home Depot reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results on Tuesday as steady demand for repairs and smaller home-improvement projects helped the retailer navigate a U.S. housing market that remains constrained by high borrowing costs and expensive homes.

The company reported quarterly revenue of $47.86 billion, an increase of 5.7% from a year earlier, while adjusted earnings came in at $4.92 per share.

The results highlight an important divide in consumer spending on housing. Customers continue to undertake necessary repairs, maintenance and relatively affordable improvement projects, while demand for larger discretionary renovations remains weaker.

The broader housing environment remains challenging. Higher mortgage costs have discouraged many prospective buyers, while existing homeowners who secured significantly lower mortgage rates in previous years have less incentive to sell and finance another property at today’s borrowing costs.

That has contributed to reduced housing turnover — an important factor for the home-improvement industry because buying or selling a house often triggers spending on painting, flooring, appliances, kitchens and other renovation projects.

Homeowners, however, cannot postpone every expense.

Roofs require repairs, plumbing fails, gardens need maintenance and ageing homes require continuing investment regardless of whether their owners intend to move.

That distinction appears to be supporting demand for smaller projects even while consumers remain cautious about committing to expensive renovations.

For Home Depot and the wider home-improvement industry, the development could become increasingly important if America’s housing slowdown persists. A prolonged period in which homeowners remain in their properties for longer could sustain spending on maintenance and repairs, even without a significant recovery in home sales.

It is still too early to conclude that Americans are permanently choosing renovation over relocation. Large projects remain under pressure, and consumer spending could change considerably if mortgage rates fall or housing activity recovers.

But the latest results suggest that weakness in home sales does not necessarily translate into an equivalent decline in spending on homes.

Americans may not be ready to buy another house — but they still have to take care of the one they already own.