qq: :-) Think about all the dust mites that live in carpet and the stuff brought in from the outside on shoes! Sorry, but I just can't think of anything more unappealing than carpet (especially with kiddies crawling around on it). To me it's the equivalent of taking an article of clothing, walking all over it, then wearing it.

I honestly don't have any personal experience with Pergo (or Pergo-like floors), but I believe it has a decent warranty. I have seen it used in some commercial applications and it seems to hold up pretty well.

I probably would not do engineered wood only because it can scratch pretty easily and would be somewhat more expensive.

My daughter had Pergo. She and my husband installed it. I was amazed at how good it looked and how well it held up. She had 3 large dogs who played on it constantly without ruining the look. She just had a new home built and had Pergo installed there as well. I think it would stand up to your children.

The discussions about vinyl and carpeting on these boards have me worried since I just spent 10k to have new carpet and vinyl installed. Is everything supposed to be hardwood or slate now?

As a buyer, I would much rather have a flooring allowance (however much you'd spend on Pergo) than Pergo. I'd use it to install hardwoods and tile in the kitchen. As a buyer, I also avoided carpets and vinyl. The house we ended up buying has vinyl in the bathroom, and that will be the first thing to go- we're installing tile ourselves.

I agree with wpikhat. I think a flooring allowance would be best. Whatever you do some people aren't going to like it. If the carpet is really dirty, it might be a good idea to rent a shampooer to at least help it look a little better for showings. That shouldn't cost much.

I usually like the idea of a floor allowance, but it really depends on how bad the current floor looks. If the floor looks really bad, then not replacing the current floor coverings might actually result in a lower price for the house if it gives potential buyers a bad first impression. I think a lot depends on whether the OP is in a buyers market.

I disagree with offering a flooring allowance. Most buyers see what is in front of them and you can't assume they will envision how nice a new floor will look. If you want to sell in a timely fashion, I reccomend you go ahead and install laminate flooring. It looks good and is easy to install. We just installed laminate in our downstairs and have put area rugs in appropriate places, it looks fantastic, even though it was fairly inexpensive (.99 sq ft from home depot) it has a 20 year warranty. If you install it correctly it lasts well and will look far better than dirty old carpet to any buyers.

I've used both Pergo and Costco....I'll take the Costco ANYDAY of the week.....Much, much nicer. When I was so pleased with the Costco floor, I thought the Pergo would even be better when I needed a new floor in a different home. No way. It is much noisier and has a tendency to track smears (from your shoes)

I think color is also a factor. I think the light and medium woodtones work better. Stay away from anything very dark or it shows problems.

Laminate wood floors, no matter the brand, it screams where else did the seller go cheap.

Carpet, a buyer thinks it wouldn't cost much to replace this.

I must be suffering from old F*** disease. I had no idea I was slumming it because my half million dollar house has carpet and vinyl. I wonder if we don't get a very skewed look at things here - MUST we have granite countertops, tile or slate floors, etc. etc. to even think of putting our houses on the market? If that is the standard, there are a lot of homes around here that can't be sold.

The OP said that the house is in a low-average neighborhood. I'd venture to guess that laminate would be an upgrade in such a neighborhood.

Given the budget friendly choices of laminate or carpet in a low-average neighborhood, I'd pick laminate. Laminate will eliminate any "old-carpet-with-kids" odor and stain issues and give some continuity. And a buyer can easily rip it out if they don't care for it. Only do DIY installation if you can do it well (I think you can).

In a high end neighborhood Costco lamiante might not fly, but it seems OK for the home described.

While I fully admit that if I were buying, I'd rather have the flooring allowance, but I'm not the average buyer. Nor are others here :). The first impression made by clean, new, odor-free, stain-free flooring is superior to the intangible flooring allowance. And many buyers want a turn-key home.

Do the laminate. No, the whole world has not gone off the deep end, Devorah. My friend just built the house of her dreams. She has vinyl floor tiles in the foyer, kitchens, and laundry. Around here, "tile" can include vinyl tiles!

I do believe that THS members are a self-selected group of people who care more about the ins and outs of home ownership and we may be savy about trends compared to others in our locations.

If laminate is considered "nice" and not "cheap" where you are, go for it. Even if it is not perfect, it will look nice and buyers will be influenced more by the new, clean look than considerations about whether it is real wood or just a photo of wood on a tough laminate surface. This is a starter home, so it seems appropriate.

As a buyer I would prefer a floor allowance; I personally don't like carpet and would like 'real hardwood floors'....that said if you can pull it off by installing a nice looking hardwood then go for it.

Good Luck in your decision~

Just one thing to keep in mind if you are installing a laminate or floating floor. The floor will now be raised by close to 3/4 or a full inch. You may have to trim a few doors. Not a big deal, but something to keep in mind.

I would also prefer the allowance.
BUT if something had to be done now, I would rather see carpet than a fake wood. Plus, the carpet will be easier for me to remove and put what I want in...

Jerzee girl, I agree about the carpet being nasty part. I think it's hard to keep clean and the dust is a problem for me also. Not to mention the traffic/wear marks. Personally I would like a home with very minimal carpet. PErhaps in the living room and bedrooms other than master but that's it. My point was I've never heard of it being necessary to get top dollar for a house to have all solid floors. The last house I owned, there was a house next door built by the same builder at the same time and they used pergo throughout. (per buyer) The same color and everything. I thought it looked strange. Each room looked good by itself but not having any change whatsoever just looked kinda bad.
They did the whole house, start to finish in one day.

Let's take a dining room measuring 12'x12'
That's 144sf total.
I got a flyer in the mail yesterday after I wrote my other reply that said laminate floor $1.98/sf and hardwood $4.99 (installed)
To do the living room in laminate, it will cost $285.12. To do it in wood it will cost $718.56. It's a difference of $433.44
To some of us that's a big difference of money saved for that one room. To others, it's nominal. However this is something intended to last in the home for decades. This isn't like skimping on the toilet paper roll holder. In fact, spending the extra dough on the flooring will give you license to use other less expensive fixtures throughout because they won't feel so cheap.

I would pay up to 3 times the value of the wood floors to buy a house with them already installed in sellers market. If it was a buyers market and I had plenty to choose from, I'd buy a house with the wood floors installed over those without. Luckily here in GA practically every new construction has at least a portion of the house in hardwood and it makes a big difference when you (in my case) walk through a hardwood foyer into a berber living room then by the time you get to the vinyl kitchen, it doesn't seem so bad. It's a balance I can live with.

I have walked in and directly out of houses that used new pergo thinking that was an upgrade. Upgrade over what? Bare concrete?

In the area we live in, laminate flooring would be considered desireable. Not as desireable as real wood floors, but more desireable than carpet (especially worn or dirty looking carpet). Uprgrades like granite countertops are rare and generally only found in high end homes.

We have laminate floors throughout our home. Real wood floors (nail down) were not an option, and there was a significant cost difference between engineered wood floors and laminate. I don't regret it. Our laminate floors are nice, low maintenance, and perfect for our kids and our dog.

Carrie

Devorah ... I have to laugh because that's my reaction too. My older home has hardwoods, laminate and vinyl. I installed Pergo in 2 additions, and redid my bedroom with a different laminate. I hardly consider myself "cheap" ... it was a personal preference.

Large dogs and their furry feline friends are very destructive to hard wood floors. The laminates are much more forgiving. People have walked into my family room addition and asked me what type of wood floor it is ... they are amazed when I say it's Pergo.

And this Spring I'm going to be redoing my kitchen and 2 bathrooms, and I'm putting down VINYL! Marmoleum to be exact. Can't wait, the colors it comes in are just amazing. And there will be NO granite counter tops, cherry cabinets or stainless appliances .... not my style.

So install the laminate ... better than wall-to-wall carpeting, in my opinion. You or your buyers can always add area rugs.

"and I'm putting down VINYL! Marmoleum to be exact."

pam: actually Marmoleum is not vinyl but a totally natural product made of sawdust and linseed oil and other stuff. I love Marmoleum!

Laminate...
is laminate...
is laminate...

Yes, it is better than cheap carpet; but despite what the advertising says, it still scratches. Yes, there are varing degrees of depth to different laminates... but it still scratches and unlike hardwood, you can't strip, sand, & re-stain when it needs to be refinished.

So, if you have pets with sharp toenails/claws, or if you have kids who like to bring skateboards or blades into the home, if you have furniture with rough rollers, or if you don't take your shoes off when entering the home (small rocks do embed themselves in tread more often than you think).... stay away from laminate flooring!

In my opinion, You would actually be better off installing a quality vinyl or a low grade hardwood than Pergo.

On the other hand, if you are diligent about removing your shoes once inside.... Pergo will give you the upgraded look at a fraction of the cost. (and many people don't recognize the difference, until it scratches of course)

I say go laminate. With our 2 dogs and grandkids and friends it wears like iron. It even looks great with the granite slab counters in the kitchen.

I'd much rather have "preowned" laminate than "preowned" carpet. You can really clean laminate, while you can't really get all the imbedded dirt out of carpet. People with allergies will prefer laminate, too.

In a starter home, I'd be thrilled to find newish laminate. Whatever new flooring you decide on, you'll probably make yourself crazy getting the kids to treat it nicely. Such is the life in a home for sale.

My DH and I are planning on putting our house on the market next Spring. We are planning on replacing the carpet in our living room and down the hallway - we are leaning toward laminate, but are not sure. We HAVE to do something b/c our beloved Lab tore up the berber carpet by the back door and has also peed on the carpet which I can never seem to get clean. I think that the quality of laminate has improved tremendously and like it better than carpet in a common area.

Living in a rural area and having a husband who enjoys working outside,cutting wood etc, we chose to replace our kitchen and family room floors with the laminate about 2 yrs ago. We got a sample first and let it get wet,put it thru some other tests to see if it held up. It has held up beautifully and was not " Top of the line " -- the "Click-Lock type. " I have heard there are problems with Pergo. Did the installation ourselves. We did leave/replace the LR carpet with frankly a cheaper carpet. I sometimes think we should have replaced that with laminate also. If it becomes important to replace the Lr Carpet, we will not be out a lot, even if we offer an allowance. There are commercial cleaners made to clean laminate but I usually just use a bit of liquid soap in warm water. Tried some of the oil-based wood cleaners but they left a film.
Have carpet in the bedrooms, a tiled entry, hall and main flr.Bath.

My experience with laminate has been oposite of dach's. We have four kids who bring in roller skates, we always wear our shoes and roll stuff all over the place. We chose Wilsonart and it has been fine. Not a scratch, except where one of the kids dropped something over the staircase and any type of floor would have gouged there. If the choice is between laminate and carpet, I'd go with the laminate. Just try and pick something which won't limit people in decorating.

Gloria

My neighbor has 4 dogs (one a Malamute) and beautiful laminate floors. I really thought they were hardwood when I saw them. Their floors were there when they bought the house 5 years ago and still look nice.

I say go for the laminate. Sure, we (almost) all want hardwood, but laminate will make a good impression.

I say go for the laminate. Sister with two large german shepherds had laminate installed a couple of years ago, not even a very realistic one but she loves it and I couldn't see any signs of scratching or damage. It will be my next choice when the time comes. OTOH prior to moving into this house last month we were staying at moms who has real hardwoods original with her 40's house. I have to go back now and cover up some of the scratches my two dogs did while we were living there, just from walking over it. Plus I agree, you're talking about an investor or first time buyers house so spending extra on higher quality real hardwood or even the highest quality laminate isn't worth it in my mind.

I think either is good for a starter home. But if time/money is an issue... For less than $2 sf installed, you can get someone else to carpet all through your crazy twists and turns. For the same amount, you can get cheaper laminate that holds up amazingly well (I have two different brands and it's been great through kids and pets), but can be a bear to install in tricky rooms.

I did my kitchen and hall years ago and it was quite time-consuming. I just replaced my old stained carpet in the family room and it was much faster/easier because it's just a big square room.

As for the kids, I'd consider installing the carpet RIGHT before it goes on the market.

Thank you so much. I have really enjoyed reading everyone's responses. I think we will go with laminate downstairs. Many of you, like the last poster, have said even some of the less expensive brands have worked well. Would you mind sharing which brands you used or saw, and which worked well (or not)? I saw the Trafficmaster laminate at HD for $0.97/sq ft, and a similar price for Kronotex at Lowes. And of course, there's Costco. Any suggestions? This is mainly to get this house sold (though I don't want to cheat the new owner with stuff that will fall apart in a week). Thanks.

I too have learned a lot from the replies here!
Good golly, miss molly. I cannot believe the overwhelming tolerance of laminate flooring but this is good to know next time I got to sell a place.

Another laminate person here! We have the armstrong swiftlock and LOVE it!!! We did a scratch test first and we couldn't seem to damage it so we picked that one. Also it is textured like real wood and comes in planks so it looks very "real"

We are DIY's (out of necessity) and installing hardwood is near impossible so we did the laminate and are extremely happy. We have two dogs, one of which was sick and happened to vomit on our laminate a couple times and it cleans up SO easily!
We bought the armstrong at lowes. I think it is the more expensive style however they have cheaper ones you may want to look at.
If I had to choose between carpet or laminate I would go with the laminate. Then you can put down nice rugs where you want them and not be stuck with a dirty, ratty rug. Of course having an allowance to pick what I want would be pretty exciting! Noone seems to do that here.

-renee

I agree! Go for the laminate!

We have the Costco laminate. It's a different 'finish' then the finishes in stores now, but believe it is the same brand. We LOVE our floors. They were SO EASY to install. We've got them on the entire first floor of our house (so, about 1000 sq ft) and in the playroom upstairs. We'll be installing them in our master bath as well.

We've had 3 different family members use the Costco flooring since putting in ours. My parents even replaced their hardwood with the Costco laminate. It's such an inexpensive project...in a couple of years when you (or buyer) change their mind it's not like they're destroying thousands. I believe total cost for ALL our flooring was $1600.

Everyone has their own ideas and tastes so I think it would change for every person that walks through you house. For me, personally, I would like a floor allowance. I can look over the nasty floors if I know there's some cash for me to redo it. Many of my friends don't want to be bothered with "redoing" anything in a house they've just purchased. I also don't like Pergo flooring. To me it looks cheap, plastic and it sounds hollow. It would drive me crazy and I would replace that. What I'm trying to say, is every person likes/dislikes something different. The previous owners of my house replaced the carpet in the living/dining room because the cat had accidents on it. We told them to just give us the money, but the carpet was already ordered adn cut. We've ripped the brand new carpet out because it was ugly and cheap---and that was IMO of course. You have to do what you feel will work for the majority of people. Ask your realtor for her input would be my suggestion. She'll likely know what people looking at houses in your area will find attractive.

lizzie I think we're the only two that feel this way about laminate! It's like saying you'd rather have vinyl car seats instead of leather because it doesn't get scratched as easily.

The OP mentioned that their neighborhood attracts first time buyers. I can tell you from experience, the buyers I've worked with don't care what the surface is, as long as it's new.

New carpet, new laminate, new tile.... Makes very little difference.

They often don't have the resources to re-do their first place, and are looking for as many replaced items as they can find.

quickyquercus: I think most of us "laminate lovers" can only afford vinyl car seats.

Of course I would get hardwood, fully installed by super efficient and well trained workers, if I could afford it however most people can not justify the HUGE difference in price between laminate and real wood. I wanted something that was pretty, easy to clean, and affordable. Laminate is also something that can be installed easily by homeowners and this saves alot of money!

There are many types of people on this forum and we all have different incomes and needs. You need to keep that in mind.

I don't think income is even an issue here. I don't tolerate my laminate flooring. I chose it because it is the best flooring surface for how we live. I could have put in hardwood. We live, and live hard, in this house. The flooring was a practical decision, just like the fabrics and paint. Surfaces which fit our lifestyle.

The original question was choosing between laminate and carpet, not a dispute that anyone who would choose laminate is only tolerating the material and wish they could afford something else.

Gloria

Your right, I am sorry. I just felt a little offended at someone's comment. That is why i wrote that my comments.

I did say that laminate is more suitable than wood for some people:

"there are many types of people on this forum and we all have different incomes and needs"

For a low-average house, my personal preference would be carpet. We've had people voice opinions on all the options, and all with conflicting advice.

I recommend asking a local real estate agent or two. They would probably be better able to tell you than us what would be most valuable in *your* area.

In my area, for an older home (mine is 30 years old), most people seem to expect ceramic entry, vinyl kitchen and baths, and carpet everywher else.

Good luck!

--Beth

"I don't think income is even an issue here. I don't tolerate my laminate flooring. I chose it because it is the best flooring surface for how we live."
Amen to that. Like I said before, it goes great with my slab granite kitchen counters.

Well, the question wasn't what do you want in YOUR home, it's what will attract buyers. Bottom line, CLEAN and modern is the number one goal there. While I agree that *I*, Jana the informed buyer, would want a carpet allowance, I'm a realist and know that new flooring will make the home more marketable, even if it's not the nicest floor in the world.

The OP is in a neighborhood of starter homes. His market is first time buyers. Hardwood is probably not an option for OP. He's looking for the *least* expensive way to increase the marketability of his home. IMO, laminate is the way to do that.

BTW, I have leather seats in my car LOL.

"I can tell you from experience, the buyers I've worked with don't care what the surface is, as long as it's new."

That's why builders take short cuts. They don't care because the buyer doesn't care. Well I would take a different approach. Instead of giving a first time buyer the cheapest possible everything, why not give them a sampling of the good life. You can skimp in some rooms but if you do at least the foyer in real wood or tile you really are adding value to the house. You have to spend money to make money, it has nothing to do with income. I didn't mean to hurt anyones feelings or offend. If you want to get back at me, you can feel free to email me privately and tease me about my vinyl siding and how tacky it looks. I promise I will take it and then we'll be even.

Vinyl Siding! Oh, how could you? :-) I've discovered that's a very popular choice up here in Oregon. In SoCal it would never make an appearance. I'm a little put off by it, but it seems to be acceptable here. Must be the rainy weather.

Vinyl Siding! Oh, how could you? :-) I've discovered that's a very popular choice up here in Oregon.

I'm very surprised to hear that. In southern Oregon it is rarely seen and is considered a negative. I also never saw a house with vinyl siding when I lived in Eugene. My in-laws live in the Vancouver, BC area and there are quite a few homes with vinyl siding there, but I don't see it as a selling feature in Oregon.

The worst part is right after I bought the place the county placed a moratorium on new construction with vinyl siding!

This builder gives you a big house for the money but it comes at the expense of some things, vinyl siding and lot size being two of them. This is also the perfect example to prove my point because I still feel this is a nice house because it does have a decent amount of hardwood flooring and berber, also cultured stone facade and nice plumbing fixtures and cabinetry. Little things like that really went a long way in my case. The level of finish was better with other builders but I really needed the extra space.

Vinyl siding is horrible though. I can't imagine it being popular in the pacific NW since vinyl gets mildewed and needs to be pressure cleaned at least once a year. Twice on the north side. Neighbors were getting quotes of like $300 and up to do it but I did it myself.
On a windy day you can hear the siding shaking and it's very annoying.
And weren't people in the vinyl siding factories getting really sick? I remember some documentary on HBO some number of years ago about this.

By the way I have a truck with vinyl seats and the floors are not even carpeted, they are rubber!
And yes... it's VERY EASY TO CLEAN!
I kid you not, I take a hose and hose out the inside of the truck. But still, it's a truck and not a house. If you want the most practical house and easiest to clean why not live in a metal warehouse then you don't have to worry about the place getting messed up.

We have Uniboard Lock and Seal from Sam's Club. Very happy with it.
Kathy G in MI

If you're going to do laminate, be sure to install it correctly. Stagger the boards. We like laminate, but recently went into a house where the owner had DIY laminate and the board ends were all lined up. It looked pretty bad because of the repetitive grain on each board.

We used the Uniboard from Sam's Club to do a basement. It came out very nicely and definitely was a selling feature in our price range (townhome under $200K). But I don't think it's THAT easy to install. My husband got frustrated a lot, if I remember correctly.... But that may be because we weren't working with a rectangular area.

We bought laminate from a flooring company and had them install it at our house in SoCal. This is one thing I didn't want to DIY ourselves - I thought a bad job would be obviously bad.

We went with a hickory plank by Quick-Step. Staggered with a beveled edge. Really nice medium color with a nice grain. More expensive than most but worth it. Almost everyone who came over thought it was real wood. Very easy to care for and nothing damaged it. We used it in the living room and master bed & bath.

When I went to confirm the purchase they had stacks and stacks of our choice there, all with the same customer name marked on the boxes. The salesman said it was being installed in a 3-story house in Laguna Beach - that would be a several million $$ house. Laminate is great for the easy California lifestyle.

Here is a link that might be useful: U1014U, upper right - click it for big picture