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I have had laminate for years and love it for all the reasons the above posters mentioned. Not everyone can afford better stuff. And in a lot of neighborhoods laminate is an upgrade, though probably not mentioned as such. Understandably so, but way better than carpet.
People have different situations, preferences and needs. I like laminate flooring. Sure, it can warp if it gets wet, but overall it's a more durable option for people with pets. Our house is carpeted, and with three dogs, a cat and a parrot, it is a terrible flooring option for us. Most of the house has hardwood underneath the carpet, except the family room. Right now, I think my number one choice would be stained concrete. To each their own. I don't think laminate devalues a home, at least not around here.
......I see listings which list laminate flooring as an "upgrade". ......
Does the listing actually say "upgraded with laminate"? Because part of the listing process involves telling what type of flooring the house has. When the house has laminate, the agent can't write "I don't want to tell you" on the form here it asks for the type of flooring.
Some of the better laminates look pretty good. Real hardwood flooring can be quite expensive. Depending on the price point for a house, it might not make sense to put in real wood flooring. I looked at one house where the floors were partially installed. I spoke to the instller and learned that the wood flooring in that house was costing $30,000, for the materials and labor. Yikes! You can't put a $30,000 floor into an $80,000 house. (Gotta tell ya, that was some gorgeous wood flooring; streaky hickory with a lovely pattern to it).
You shouldn't put laminate where there will be water, but you can't put real wood where there will be water, either. Laminate usually looks better than sheet vinyl.
I never install laminate flooring, but it wouldn't stop me from buying a house, either, if I liked everything else about the house.
Most of the people I know who have laminate and like it have pets. They consider it an ideal flooring when animals are running around the house. They can sweep up the pet hair easily, which can also be true of hardwood, but animal nails can scratch hardwood and other animal behavior can stain it.
My primary objection to it is the water issue. I'd never want it anywhere where a water leak is possible.
But as for it devaluing a home, I'd say that among my contemporaries, laminate flooring is looked at negatively by a minority of people. Most people seem to see a point to it under certain circumstances.
House was purchased by an investor 2 months ago, so yes, it makes sense to use the cheapest materials possible.
And get this, they're asking over 100K more lol. You have to be an idiot to purchase that property.
"Upgrades" include: New laminate flooring, new cabinet doors, and granite counter top. New interior paint. Wonder if the cabinet doors are also compressed particle boards. lol
I have had hardwood floors in three homes, and grew up in a home that had hardwood floors covered with carpet. We built a new home last year for our retirement northern home, and we chose a high quality laminate for 90% of the house. It looks great and is much healthier than carpet. Like anything, it is the quality of the product that is important.
I have seen the cheap laminate, and for some reason it looks kinda cheap.
One is that laminates are just a cheap coating over particle board. Like anything, you get what you pay for and some brands are highly engineered multi-layers of durable stuff. The top layer of Pergo, for example is scratch proof for normal wear, including big dogs playing in the house.
Another is that all laminates are full of cancer-causing chemicals. Most polymers (as in laminates) start with small molecules that might be toxic at the factory, but once the chemical polymerization is complete, there are no toxins left over. Polymers are things like nylon, plastic, vinyl, synthetic rubber. That is why these are made in highly controlled factory conditions, by experts with very special machinery, before the final product is released to the public. If you buy cheap stuff from unregulated companies you are taking a risk that the chemical reactions did not go perfectly.
The same could happen with carpet! Olefin, polypropylene, etc. are all polymers subject to the same limitations.
So, if you are limited by budget (most of us are) buy the least expensive product from the best company and you will be glad you did. Folks who tend to 'bring the outside in' like laminates over carpet because it is easier to keep clean. People who prefer carpet usually don't live in a dusty place and prefer warm toes on a cushy floor. They don't mind having it steam cleaned every couple of years.
Last edited by luv4horses; 06-22-2015 at 06:26 AM..
House was purchased by an investor 2 months ago, so yes, it makes sense to use the cheapest materials possible.
And get this, they're asking over 100K more lol. You have to be an idiot to purchase that property.
"Upgrades" include: New laminate flooring, new cabinet doors, and granite counter top. New interior paint. Wonder if the cabinet doors are also compressed particle boards. lol
Don't people realize this is just some cheap compressed particle board loaded with toxic cancer causing chemicals? And any contact with water turns it into complete garbage.
I see listings which list laminate flooring as an "upgrade". Really? Wtf are these people smoking. Any properties with laminates should be devalued by 20k.
Theres even a huge scandal with laminates provided by Lumber Liquidators over mislabeled laminates claiming to pass CA strict air quality control measures.
I actually perfer carpets over laminates. Why put your health at risk? Quit being cheap.
There's a huge range of quality (and price) in laminate flooring, just as there is in carpeting. We've had Pergo in the downstairs living areas of our townhome, and love it for its looks, durability, and low maintenance. Water spills have not turned it into garbage. For us, it wasn't a cost issue. We were simply looking for attractive, durable flooring to replace carpet in a house with multiple pets. We aren't trying to fool anyone into thinking it is hardwood. If we had wanted hardwood, we would have installed hardwood.
Most of the people I know who have laminate and like it have pets. They consider it an ideal flooring when animals are running around the house. They can sweep up the pet hair easily, which can also be true of hardwood, but animal nails can scratch hardwood and other animal behavior can stain it.
My primary objection to it is the water issue. I'd never want it anywhere where a water leak is possible.
But as for it devaluing a home, I'd say that among my contemporaries, laminate flooring is looked at negatively by a minority of people. Most people seem to see a point to it under certain circumstances.
I chose laminate for my great room because I have pets. Cost wasn't a consideration. I could have easily afforded hardwoods. My priority was ease of cleaning and durability.
Edited to add: I didn't set out to get laminate. I told the flooring company owner who came to my house in the van what my priorities were. He advised me to get laminate, even though he would have made more money if I had chosen hardwoods.
I used a flooring company that comes to your house with a huge van containing large samples so you can more easily visualize how it will look in the house. The laminate they carried looked so much like the hardwood samples that I needed help determining which was which. And anyone who came to my house afterwards remarked how nice my "hardwood floor" looked.
I haven't had any trouble with water issues. I have the dogs' water dish in the kitchen on the tile but right next to the transition to laminate. The dogs have dribbled water on the laminate for 7 years and it's been there for hours before I noticed it and cleaned it up. Our cat is a barfer. We've gone away for weekends, leaving the cat in the house with enough food to last, and come home to find cat barf on the laminate. It could have been there for hours or days. No damage to the laminate.
I have seen cheap-looking laminate, though, that I would never install in my house.
Edited to add: I didn't set out to get laminate. I just wanted to get rid of the carpet. The owner of the flooring company advised me to choose laminate over hardwood based on my priorities.
Last edited by KayT15; 06-22-2015 at 06:33 AM..
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