It means that when you go to the Settings Dialog with no element selected, this field shows the current default setting, which is the value newly placed elements will get.
However, you can set that default value of the Renovation Status here. You need to open the Windows\Palettes\Renovation Palette and click one of the 3 Renovation Statuses buttons to set the default value. If you set it to "New" for example and then go back to the Settings Dialog you will see the Renovation Status field has changed to "New".
Please note that The Renovation Filter field controls which of the 3 buttons are enabled. Only those are enabled that are set to "Show" or "Override" for the currently active Renovation Filter. This can be viewed and modified in the Renovation Filter Options Dialog, also accessible from the Renovation Filter drop-down list of the Renovation Palette.
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