We used Granite in 2 rental properties a couple of years ago. We used Giallo Ornamental which isn't very expensive at all and is durable paired with White cabinets. No problems with either going on the 2nd year of rental. Top left is the color the rest of the weird coloring is a reflection

as clr states, if your competing units have granite, I'd pull strongly for granite. As you said, the one you have now still looks good. Possible to drop new appliances into the old granite and update backsplash? Never a tile countertop - - we ripped ours out (builder grade). Impossible to keep the grout clean when you live with it, and renters won't bother.

I would go with granite. There have been quite a few problems posted around the internet on quartz. Easily chips, can stain, resin yellows, sun fading areas?, can't take hot pots, products can damage/change the surface sheen and I imagine the resin could yellow from clorox products. Renters are notoriously hard on things. It doesn't seem to matter how educated they are. I would not trust them with laminate, solid surface or quartz, which can all cost as much as the granite anyway.

Granite for sure.

Thanks. I am leaning towards granite. Mostly for the durability. We have butcher block in our shore house that we rent, but it's only rented for eight weeks a year, plus we are in there the rest of the time and I can keep up with it. I'd never do it in this type of rental. The development is about thirty years old and probably has a mix of just about everything from original kitchens to newer, fancier ones. Mostly they are owner occupied. Ours has hardwood floors in the main level which makes it a little nicer than some.

I see people recommend a dark, leathered granite to look like soapstone. Is leathered granite more prone to staining or other damage? Personally I like the light granite that Jancy posted. It looks like it would go nicely with many colors of cabinets. But I am intrigued with the leathered granite.

Ditto! Crl has a great summary! Snookums is right about the attitude of renters.

Do yourself a favor and use a lower level, neutral granite that does not have to be sealed. Stone with an absorption rate less than 0.25% does not have to be sealed.

I believe the leathered black shows fingerprints a lot. Check for previous threads. I would do something light and more airy. It not only feels fresh and clean, important, but I think that coloring would be more universally appealing. Dark surfaces also suck a lot of light out of the room.

I am pretty sure I will get sick of my granite before it ever wears out. 11 years and it looks as good as day 1.

Snookums, I have a leathered blackish granite and no fingerprints at all. I think it's called San Benedito.

If you're talking renters, you'd better think repairability. Granite and estone isn't it.

Laminate, unless these are really high end rental units. More modern laminate that wraps around the counter edge. There's some attractive stuff out there.

Put in something that will compete with the higher priced units. The right countertop will shorten the time on the market for lease and also nice kitchens are known to help avoid the dreaded 'vacancy'.

I agree with the posters who asked what other rentals in your area have. If they all have granite, that's the way to go. If not, get a nice pattern laminate. It is pretty tough stuff. Our last rental was in a middle income area, we put laminate in for the cost and durability. No trouble renting the place. In a higher income market, however, granite might be better. True, hot pots can damage laminate, but I wouldn't put a hot pot directly on any type counter surface, be it laminate, or any other material.

You wouldn't put hot pots on any counter but renters will. Never underestimate the damage renters can cause -- even those you are sure would be more careful. They would produce the same damage in their own homes, only difference is they would have to fix it not leave it for the landlord.

Get a solid surface (for repairability) or granite (for resistance to damage). You asked if granite is "out" -- I think only those highly speckled granites that have become common in the mass market construction and are mimicked by all the artificial surfaces may be falling out of favor.

They will cut on them too. Plus laminate stains. I imagine using the wrong products on it wears down the surface to contribute to that.

Granite, because aside from the kitchen-obsessed on forums like these :), regular people (renters) still think of granite as a 'high end' option. But, the price structure has lowered so much with its popularity that it isn't a break the bank option.

I inherited a house that had those ugly old school oak cabinets and laminate countertops, with battered appliances. The cabinets were solid wood though, so my wonderful contractor installed new granite countertops, I bought reasonably priced SS appliances and the kitchen ended up being the room that most impressed everyone who came to look at the house!

Thanks for your input, everyone. This kitchen will be a total gut job. We want it to look nice for a long time.

Joseph Corlett, I really appreciate your input on this forum. If you check back here I'd really like your assessment of how likely damage to granite is. Not possible, likely. Especially if it isn't one that is dyed dark. In my experience granite is very durable.

I'm installing laminate that looks like granite in my rental. I understand all the tradeoffs but there is one that I'm wondering about. I like the lighter granite look laminate even with white cabinets because it seems more cheerful and less likely to turn anyone off. But my handyman insists that dark is the way to go since I have white cabinets and stainless appliances and either color can work. He swears that the lighter color even multicolored granite looking laminates gets stained or discolored over time and are hard to make look right but that black or dark granite stays better looking and is easy to cover scratches and stuff. Does anyone have any experience with whether black is a more polarizing choice that certain renters won't like or any experience with upkeep of either of these colors in the granite looking laminates? These are the two colors I'm picking between (shown in white kitchens to get an idea):

Any experience with which countertop would be best for a rental apartment for appealing (or not turning off) the widest range of tenants and if one is really easier to maintain over time or not given that they are both laminate? i need to decide fast.

I am a fabricator. Both granite and engineered stone ("quartz") can give you a lot of different looks and a very durable top. I see more complaints about chipping with Quartz on this forum but I suspect it's because the buyers are not educated about the tendency of sharp angled edge profiles to chip at the big box stores where a lot of it is sold. (I don't think I've ever seen a chip in a 3/8" top radiused edge.)

I had a light colored Formica counter for 20 years before I remodeled.

Yes it stained, but the stains removed easily with a dab of bleach. The bleach did not harm the laminate. The surface did suffer cut marks though when certain people didn't use the cutting board. Perhaps current versions aren't so prone to that.

I consulted a real estate agent locally when I was thinking about my remodel. She said then (7 years ago) that she thought people were really loving the white cabinet/dark counter trend, said that it sold quite a few houses. Personally I think that either will be fine as far as tenants liking it, but the dark is a quieter look and so perhaps easier for them to decorate around.