Yes, berber would be a good option for you. For lower maintenance, I would go with a color that will not show dirt as much (I had a light-colored berber at a previous house, and it had a tendency to show dirt, so I had to work harder to keep it looking nice).

I don't care for area rugs of any kind. I like an uninterrupted vision on a floor. Just my preference. Plus if you have nice floors why cover them up. I did have 2 in my last house (that is were I found out I don't like them) , but they never creeped, slithered, wormed, lollygaged or crawled anywhere. They did fly though, out the front door when I found out I don't like area rugs. Find a nice pattern and enjoy. You might find out you like the W/W carpet in the basement if you live in a cold weather climate. The floor is so much warmer.

I am redoing the carpet in my townhome. I got a quote for Shaw Anso BCF nylon carpet called “find your comfort” level one. I love the color and the softness of the sample. I was curious if anyone has chosen similar carpet? I went to a different carpet store and the man is trying to sell me DreamWeaver polyester carpet. It’s half the price and similar softness to the Shaw carpet I just don’t want to make a costly mistake. I have seen horrible reviews online about Dreamweaver carpet, but also not so great reviews on Shaw Anso Nylon carpet. I am single but have 2 elderly small dogs.

My thought is you won't lose much heat thru your floor as heat tends to rise upward and be lost thru windows, doors and roofs. You say you have floorboards but that may, in fact, be flooring decking. If so, you will need to install actual new flooring on top of the decking . Carpet is an okay option for bedrooms but for high use and high traffic rooms wood, engineered wood or LVP is a better option. And, yes, as other posters have said, rugs are great for adding softness and warmth to rooms with those types of flooring. Good luck!