Air Step Basix by Congoleum is an excellent budget minded choice. They have 2 wood looks in the line. No wrinkle guarantee and it is a floating vinyl which will save you a ton in floor prep. We sell all 6 major brands of vinyl flooring. They are Armstrong, Tarkett, Mannington, Congo, IVC, and Metrofloor. All offer what they call a looselaid vinyl...but none of them mind you..do what Congoleums can do. We never ever have a buckling problem with the Congo. Airstep basix is the way to go. Check it out. PS they make 2 higher calipered ones.. Air Step Evolution and Air Step Plus..same backing system all are urethane and will perform pretty much the same....but Basix is one helluva buy! Good luck

Thank you. That will really help. Maybe I can find another flooring store that will serve our area that carries it.

Well, according to the website, the closest store that sells the air step is an hour away. Two close ones that sell Congoleum, but they don't show to sell the air step.

If they sell Congo Vinyl floors, they will sell Airstep. They cant sell vinyl, without having Airstep available to them. it's part of the deal with congoleum. Good Luck

For a little visual inspiration ;)
I'm working on my own flooring decisions right now and I find it helpful to see how it will look in my own place.

Here is a link that might be useful: [Easy-care resilient floors[(https://www.houzz.com/magazine/the-case-for-linoleum-and-vinyl-floors-stsetivw-vs~672851)

Thanks. WISH I could use looks at a deciding factor, but budget is the number one priority.

My parents are building on the same 100 acre plot of land. If we are still around when they no longer live in that house, we will move into it. If that happens, or if my parents outlive us, I assume the house we are moving into will be torn down as soon as it is vacant as it doesn't make sense on the property any longer with the new house and additional outbuildings. One good thing about that is that we don't have to consider resale value with any changes we make.

I just finished installing vinyl plank, Surface Source, from Lowe's, in our kitchen dining area as a diy project. I love how easy it was to install. It is the chestnut color, and looks wonderful with our wood furniture. With taxes included it came to $1.88 per square foot. Throw in another $150 for a laser floor tiling square, a really good utility knife, a woodworkers and carpenter's square, several rulers and yardsticks for measuring and cutting guides, and an orthopedic pillow for sitting on the floor while you work. It installed fast, and I'm very happy with the result and price. I also considered Konnecto (sp?) and other brands.

A few months ago I diy installed 3 x 3 carpet tiles in my study. They were 1st quality overrun on closeout and were meant to be glued down. I installed them as a floating floor and fastened them together with hot melt carpet tape at each corner. So far I like them a lot. There has been no movement, and they are incredibly easy to clean and look great. They had a commercial use grading. With taxes and truck shipping it cost $2.12 per square foot. They are very difficult to cut and trim when installing. I used a dremel moto tool with a reinforced fiberglass blade (many of them), 7" dress making scissors (extremely sharp), and a good utility knife.

In a mobile home I'd probably do some of each.
Hope that helps.

While I realize your budget is important to you, low end flooring often is not the least costly option in the long run.

For instance, I have 30+ year old top of the line inlaid resilient sheet vinyl flooring in almost all of my wet areas. It is still performaing like the day I installed it.

Compare that to some of my price-conscious relatives who elected low end resilient flooring (2-5 year warrenty) which I have replaced many times over the years at a much higher total price.

Of course you know what you can afford, however if at all possible, I recommend putting as much into a higher grade of product that you can afford (even if you need to put it on credit and pay it off), because in the long run, it will be MUCH MUCH less expensive, because it lasts exponentially longer.

Top-quality floor coverings are really an investment in your home and a much greater savings, even though the up-front costs are higher.