This counter material seems so problematic that I think I would pull it out. Try contacting the tile manufacturer to try to get the same lot ( if it hasn't been very long since you purchased, there might be a hope). If only the tile just above the counter is damaged, and you can't get a close enough match, maybe a cosmetic fix would be to install a row of close- but- not- quite tile linearly instead of chevron right at the bottom

Every choice has pluses and minuses, in the end you have to choose which plus and which minus matters the most to you and/or which have an easy fix (like using a cutting board under the crockpot; at work we have an extra piece under the big coffeemaker). budget mattered a lot to me (and I hated formica) so, I ended up with a lesser expensive granite and am very happy, no sealing or extra work for the stone I chose. I had formica previously which looked like h#*! from the day I moved in and didn't get better (except that I could use bleach to remove stains) so those of you whose formica looks like new after 30 years must be taking appropriate care -- using cutting boards (mine had little cuts all over) and so forth -- where my previous owners did not. But, I read that formica now is much better quality than what was installed 30 or 40 years ago. I looked at Burled Beach and liked it. It looked a warm sand-ish color on my samples in my house, but I saw a demo kitchen of it at a big box store and it was a warm greenish tone (I still liked it) under their fluorescent lights. You always have to ability to STOP and make changes unless the cabinets are all already made. If he is just now starting it might not be too late -- call him now! PS do you have an IKEA near to you? Most counter materials are less expensive there.

I would not put all thus money into a house you want to sell quickly. Talk with your realtor about a price where it WILL sell and price it accordingly and be done. My son bought a house in CT in spring 2008 -top of the market. A year ago, during a divorce, it finally sold after months on the market for $800,000 less than they paid for it. It still makes me sick to even write that figure, but the market there still hasn't recovered to the previous ridiculous highs. Sometimes one just has to bite the bullet and lower the price to a price that will sell.

This is my favorite quote "most people installing these likely don't actually cook." My wife really does like to cook, and some of the custom kitchens we have seen online would be really inconvenient if you cooked frequently. They are all show and not much go. For example, she would be happy to give up a fancy microwave to get other kitchen features, since she very seldom uses a microwave for anything other than minor tasks. However, you would have to pry her high BTU gas range and high flow exhaust fan from her fingers if you ever suggested something else just because it "looked good." Bruce