Laminate Flooring and Home Resale Value

8 years ago

We might sell our house in the next five years or so. We live in Albuquerque, NM and have carpeting (which really needs to be changed) and ceramic tile throughout the house. Tile floors are pretty common in NM, but our tiles are kind of ugly and beat up. A realtor friend suggested putting in wood floors if we really want to improve the house's resale value.

Our house is about 2700 sf and its built on a rather uneven slab foundation (uneven because of various additions made before we bought it, but also because of settling). We were given an estimate of about $20K to do real, stained-on-site hardwood, and I don't think we could ever recoup that, so I wondered if anything cheaper would work.

The obvious option is to just get nicer tile, but I wondered what all of you think of wood-look laminate floors. We have a large dog, and have been told that laminate stands up well to dog traffic. Is this true? And could laminate floors hurt the resale value?

A retired contractor who did some handyman work for us said there are some new wood-look laminates that are very beautiful and that he could lay them right over the existing tile. Is this a good practice? I wonder how it will work in areas where the tile now transitions to carpet. Wouldn't there be a level change? I couldn't tell if he was giving us good information or just advising us to do something we could hire him to do.

And does anyone have any experience with the wood-look ceramic tile? That's another option we were considering, but I'm wondering how the grout lines work with the pattern of the tile.
Thank you very much.

Featured Answer

jakkom

8 years ago

You'll get a zillion opinions on the Net that may have absolutely no relevance to your local RE market. Talk to a couple of good realtors (from different companies) mid-week, when they're not busy. Make it clear you're not selling now, but you are interested in what they'd advise for the best resale in your SPECIFIC market.

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Comments (11)

User
8 years ago
Hope someone can advise you on this. I'm west of you in grants,nm

i would personally go for ceramic. I'm not sure about the hardiness of

laminate there is glue underneath the laminate, what happens when you

spill water and it seeps under the floor. There was a problem with laminate

made in China.

good luck
Vertise
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Tile ripouts are not easy, cheap or fun but I would never buy a house with laminate flooring unless I didn't care about doing them over. Laminate and vinyl installations I've seen, which were not old, wear terribly. They scratch and scuff. I have also seen lifting at the seams. I prefer traditional flooring both for looks and wear.
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Put what YOU like in your home. While resale may need to be considered to some degree if you are not planning on staying in this house "forever", it should NOT factor into what you want in your home now. You can never second guess what someone else will like. Do both options if that is what you like. You will love your home more if you design it to follow your heart. Unless something is done to a home that is completely off the wall, I couldn't imagine not being able to sell it someday if you wanted to. I think built in bookshelves are nice if tastefully done. Thinking about some myself. I saw a hallway that had built in bookcases, and it was stunning....almost like a mini library, and an excellent use of "empty" space. Myself, I don't give a hoot about so called resale on the house we are planning on building. It's going to be MY house.
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Your mortage lender will likely find the 5 BR plan to be "worth" lending the extra amount. They won't be at all keen on lending money for "upgrades" that do not add square footage and do not add any real bump in value for an appraisal. The appraisals for loans are based off of what the bank could sell the house for if you went into default, not what it cost to build the house. If your plan is to upgrade the finishes the same dollar amount as the extra square footage would cost, expect those upgrades to come entirely out of your pocket, not the loan. And, still expect to bring money to the table to close the loan with. Very very few homes are appraising at the build cost. Most people are having to bring a big chunk of change to closing, and that's without upgrades above base. Right now, the per square foot to build cannot approach the low square footage cost to buy existing. Custom homes are in the $150-$200 a square foot range, while existing homes are half of that. If you want your money to go "further", then buy existing and give building a wide berth. It's only for those who have very special requirements that cannot be easily met with the existing inventory.
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If you're selling, just stage it. I'd like to see your hardware closer. Do not replace a counter with another like material. It's pointless. You're kitchen is perfectly neutral, so just give it a bang. Here's what I would do: 1- I would replace the hardware, IF necessary. 2-I would place some paintings (3) along the walls to add some color. You know those kitchen-y pics of a chef, grapes, or people sitting at tables, ect. Use something neutral- Colors that go with the rest of the area, and pleasing to the eye. Place a couple of LARGE items on the counter for a warm affect(not kitchen appliances-lol), or just place fresh flowers, or fruit on the counter to create a focal point. Make sure all these things go together. Keep it simple. If you're really adamant about replacing a counter, go to a granite yard and look for remnants. You can get a small counter done for a little more than laminate. Go with the cheaper granite. Backsaplshes are tricky, because if not done neutral, people may not like it. That is why I would suggest standing pictures along the wall...Peoples' eyes will be drawn to the decor, rather than noticing a lack of backsplash ;)
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(1) Laminate WILL NOT stand up to big dogs. I have a breed that is huge - 29" at the shoulder 110 -130 lbs. Water bowl spills kill it. Potty accidents kill it. (2) wood-look laminate floors -- I will either walk away or make an offer low enough to cover ripping that junk out and replacing it with anything else. It is NOT wood. It is sawdust that is glued together. The a photograph of wood is glued to the saw dust. The plastic is poured over it. Absolute low rent garbage. $20,000 to put down hardwood flooring....... WOW! That is nuts for anything less than 1600++ sq ft of oak or maple that had to be stained and finished. FInd a Lumber Liquidators store. Get some unfinished pine - even down to the $1.39 a sq ft. Get some mastic. Get some stain. Get some real varnish - like McCloskey's Marine and do 4 coats. Get a circular saw. Put down the flooring. If you need to level, get some underlayment - adds about $1300 to the project. Pay your handyman $20 an hour. Work alongside him getting boards, putting down mastic, spreading stain and varnish, doing the light sand between coats with 150-200 grit and wiping with a tack cloth...... if it takes 2 weeks (huge am0unt of time) you pay him $1600. Total cost for the whole house - $5200 -7300 if you do it and $6800 -9100 if you have help. (and you won't be doing the bath or kitchen....so sq ft would be less)
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PRO
Vineyard Floors
8 years ago
In my area of California laminate is the most popular flooring choice. Value is based on appearance, a good laminate should be less than half the cost of real wood.
nabq
Original Author
8 years ago
Thanks for your comments so far, everyone. Vineyard Floors, I'm interested to hear laminate floors are popular in your area of California. Do you agree with our handyman friend that some of the new laminates look as good as wood floors?
PRO
Vineyard Floors
8 years ago
It is getting harder tell the difference between real wood and laminate. I still believe that professionals will always be able to tell them apart because of textures and richness in real wood.

I personally prefer laminate overall because of the price difference. This is the laminate that I am putting in my own house this weekend. It's around $2 per square foot 12.3 mm handscraped laminate color Acacia Brown.
PRO
Vineyard Floors
8 years ago
It is getting harder tell the difference between real wood and laminate. I still believe that professionals will always be able to tell them apart because of textures and richness in real wood.

I personally prefer laminate overall because of the price difference. This is the laminate that I am putting in my own house this weekend. It's around $2 per square foot 12.3 mm handscraped laminate color Acacia Brown.
PRO
Vineyard Floors
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
It is getting harder tell the difference between real wood and laminate. I still believe that professionals will always be able to tell them apart because of textures and richness in real wood.
I personally prefer laminate overall because of the price difference. This is the laminate that I am putting in my own house this weekend. It's around $2 per square foot 12.3 mm handscraped laminate color Acacia Brown.
nabq
Original Author
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
I didn't see a link. Is it this one? Looks beautiful. http://www.sunspeedfloors.com.cn/product/60026661428-221350494/Hallmark_12_3mm_acacia_light_handscraped_laminate_flooring.html

It's interesting. I posted a similar question on the house buying and selling board, and the response to the idea of laminate was more positive there. While some realtors made the point that laminate doesn't add as much intrinsic value as wood, they did say the appearance counted for a lot when it comes to resale. Some other New Mexico residents said it holds up better to the evaporative cooling systems we use here, and others said it wasn't worth investing so much in floors here unless you were staying a long time since the market here is so bad.
Vertise
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
If you are looking for a cheaper price, nabq, then just pick the laminate. But there is no comparison with a real wood floor or tile, either in aesthetics, durability or long term performance. Simply none. Listen to the sales people that tell you what you want to hear because flooring is expensive, but materials wise, there is no comparison.
PRO
Vineyard Floors
8 years ago
http://flooringlane.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/940x940/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/d/s/dsc01347_1.jpg

Laminate Flooring and Home Resale Value

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