carpet or wood floor (Lander: wood floors, real estate, rental)

[WFK1954]

we need to re-floor our home, it is a town house worth around $100,000, we are looking at selling in the next couple of years, is a wood floor worth the expense in a house priced in the lower end ?

[Darrow]

If I were to buy a townhouse it would be the one with the solid surface flooring, something nuetral though. I have real wood floors through my older home, and that was a big factor to our purchase.

[plainsman48]

Wood flooring brings a better return on investment than any other surface.

[WyoNewk]

We'll be recovering our floors soon, and I plan to use the wood flooring. I think it's called laminate but I might have that mixed up with something else that looks like wood. We'll stick to carpet for the bedrooms and stairway leading up to them and probably stick to tile for the foyer, kitchen and baths. We'll use an area rug in the living room over the wood and plan to leave just the wood flooring in the dining room and den.

The stuff I'm talking about is cheaper than "real wood" flooring but looks just as good. I couldn't tell it from the real stuff. I had some installed in a rental that I have, and I've seen a couple homes that were do-it-yourself jobs by the owners. They looked great. I (and they) got the flooring from Home Depot.

[georgiainwyo]

I agree with WyoNewk. Being this is a lower end home you'll be reflooring I'd go with the laminate to save money but to add that "wood floor" touch. I have hardwood, which I love, as does my daughter's new home, but my niece has a new middle scale home with beautiful laminate that looks just as good as the hardwood and was much less expensive. If you have stairs I would put the laminate there, too. It is so much easier sweeping than it is vacuuming a stairway. Also, you don't get all that dust/lint stuff that accumulates along the edges of carpeted stairs!

[CptnRn]

According to the first web article referenced below, new flooring can pay off from 50% to 300% depending on how badly it is needed. You should also consider how well it will hold up before you are ready to sell the residence. Some wood or similar flooring products do not hold up well against pet scratches, high heels or moisture staining.

It should be noted that the potential return on investment for these features would be determined by the actual need for such an improvement in the subject property. For example, new flooring will add more value to a home that presently has badly worn or dated flooring. If you are simply replacing it because you don't care for the "trendy" color that you presently have, the return will be minimized. These noted improvements are often worth completing for re-sale. A freshly decorated home will sell much faster than one that is dated and showing wear

You should also consider what other improvements are needed and which will do the most to enhance your resell value. You might want to consider putting your money into home improvements that have a track record of paying off. Most experts seem to agree that bathroom and minor kitchen improvements pay of the best for interior remodeling. Here are several good articles:

Potential Resale Returns For*Various Home Improvements from the Natural Handyman home repair and do it yourself website

Home Improvements Don't All Pay Off: Mortgage Center - Yahoo! Finance

Home Improvement | Home Staging - HomeGain

Home Improvements That Increase Resale Value - Associated Content - associatedcontent.com

Cost vs. Value Report (http://www.realtor.org/archives/2006costvsvalue - broken link)

Which Home Improvements Pay Off? - Personal Finance - Real Estate - SmartMoney.com

Which Home Improvements Pay Off? : Home Improvement : Home & Garden Television

The Value Of Home Improvements - Zillow

[Brian_M]

Having been through the carpet -> laminate -> wood floor realm in the past 2 homes, the Cheapest option is laminate. I was able to put laminate in my last home for about 1/3rd the cost of the Cheapest carpet (now, I did the installation myself... it was work, but not overly difficult). They were alright, but now living in a house with real wood floors (oak, original to the 1958 home) there is no comparison. It's a shame that 300sq/ft of carpet, installed, was more expensive than having 1200sq/ft of hardwood completely refinished.

If you know you're going to sell, go cheap. My realtor in Lander told me that buyers only see "new" and equate it with quality regardless of the quality/cost (assuming it's not completely sloppy). The laminate will still be looking new in a year, do you think cheap carpet will?

[plainsman48]

Laminate looks shiny and cheap right off the bat.

HDWD flooring looks dull - the wider boards make a professional looking install.

Thump the floor to find out which one it is.