Dick Assmar, who lives in a 2,000-square-foot waterfront home in southeast Miami-Dade's Snapper Creek area, has been interested in buying a larger home for years, but was put off by the high property taxes he knew he would have to pay. Instead, he has hired a contractor to add a bedroom and bathroom to the house along with a game room where he can play pool. The cost: $250,000.

"Over the long term, it will just add value to this house," said Assmar, who is a part-owner of the Esserman Nissan dealership in northwest Miami-Dade. With the additions, scheduled to be done in a few months, the house will increase by 900 square feet. Unlike many owners remodeling their homes, he's paying out of his pocket for the project.

As the Miami Spring Home Design and Remodeling Show opens Friday at the Miami Beach Convention Center, with 300 exhibitors selling everything from rugs and lamps to elaborate custom-designed kitchens and bedrooms, those in the remodeling business are wondering if uncertainty in the housing and financial markets will result in more or fewer people doing the same as Assmar.

Organizers say that most contracts that spring from the home show are signed weeks to months afterward, though with 1,000 booths and displays of all types, it's a starting point for homeowners with an appetite for remodeling. More than 75,000 shoppers are expected to attend the show, which runs through March 31.

"Everything you need for the home, indoors or outdoors, you'll find," said spokeswoman Sharon Berube. "You can walk away with a mop or you can walk away with plans to get a home theater."