I love the new wood-look porcelain tiles they are making. Sounds perfect for your situation. Here is a link that might be useful: 6 Inch x 24 Inch Corte Aged Teak Plank

As an appraiser, I see you having two issues, which option will be the best value and which option suits your needs? The basement will provide the best return on expense. The reason is it will be heated and can be counted as finished living space below grade. The three-season room will be designated as unfinished area such as a deck or porch and valued accordingly.. If all of the other units have a basement and your unit doesn't, it may be harder to sell. Flip that statement to if all of the other units have a three-season room and yours unit doesn't it may be harder to sell. Having said that, you need to install whatever best suits your needs and desires. Life is too short. Put in the item that you think will improve the quality of your life.

I had a Vermont multi-size/color slate floor in my kitchen in the dorm apt in Maine. We bought the slate at Lowe's in Portland - it was about $1 per sq ft at that time. I have never liked a kitchen floor as much as I did that slate floor! With the multi-color/size tiles, it did not appear terribly dark. It was wonderful when the dogs (or my husband) came in with snow on all their paws (I had 5 dogs at one time up there, plus the "big dog" - i.e. my husband). It just dried and that was it. Once a year, my husband washed and sealed the floor. Other than that, I just used a broom on it. I have a sun porch and if the slab had not cracked at some time over the years, cracking the brick on top, I would put Vermont slate down in a heartbeat. I just can't deal with trying to level the slab on a 70 yr old house, and the slate will crack if I don't. If you don't care for multi-color, go with a natural green slate - it's a very pretty color. I like my sun porch to have flooring where I need not worry about water. I bring in many, many plants to winter over on the porch, and I have a spigot and coil garden hose to water all these, and I need to allow the water to come out the bottom of the pots (no saucers - pots too large). Slate would work very well.

shead - I sort wash loads into 4 categories: whites, lights, darks, jeans. On very few days would I want to put everything I'm wearing into the same load. And obviously, lives are different. DH works on a farm. All of his work clothes (which can amount to more than a load per day in the winter when he wears multiple layers) can all be washed together. It will be FAR more convenient to wash his clothes in the master closet and put immediately away than lugging them to the other side of the house and back again to put away. 90% of my things can be washed together as well.