When it comes to choosing the flooring for your home, you might not want to just think about the styles you prefer, but which is the best flooring to increase your home value.

If you’ve found your dream home already or plan on staying put for decades then you can go wild and choose whatever flooring you like!

But for those who plan to sell in the not too distant future, home improvements usually keep in mind improving the value of the house, as well as the look of the home.

So which is the best type of floor to choose to increase the value of your house?  Hard flooring or carpet?

Let’s take a look.

Why does flooring matter?

Your home’s flooring is one of the first thing that people step on to and notice when they come in to your home.  If it’s clean, high quality and new looking then it instantly gives a good overall first impression of your home.

Imagine you are taking your shoes off when you enter someone’s home.  Would you rather step onto old, work, dirty looking carpet in your bare feet or a fresh looking, clean floor?

Also, if you are selling a house then needing to replace an entire floor comes at quite a high cost.  If potential buyers don’t need to worry about replacing hard floors or carpet any time soon then your house will appeal more to them.

Is hard flooring best?

Whilst ultimately the choice between hard flooring or carpets can very much be a personal choice, if you’re trying to sell your home and have the decision to make then hard flooring is the winner.

80% of estate agents surveyed by the National Wood Flooring Association agree that installing wood floors increases home value by 1% – 10%.

Whilst hard flooring was traditionally more expensive, in modern times it’s become an affordable option with classic timeless designs like herringbone flooring now available in click together pieces so even DIY enthusiasts can install their own.

Engineered flooring looks the real deal and many laminate flooring designs have improved over the years giving a high quality hard floor finish that looks just like wood.

Hardwood floors offer a clean, neutral décor that can easily be reimagined to a potential buyer. Furniture can easily be rearranged without indents and marks left on floors or discolouration of carpet.

Hardwood flooring can be cleaned easily and look as good as new for years to come, even decades.

Real wood flooring in good condition is a real gem and can easily be reimagined by buyers as it can be sanded, stained and even painted new colours to suit their own unique style. 

Real wood flooring is usually the priciest of all flooring though, so it may not be a worthwhile investment if you’re selling soon and want a good return.  If you have wood flooring already then try to get it in good shape for your sale. 

Otherwise choose an inexpensive hard floor idea that looks just as good without the high price tag.

Don’t carpet wall to wall

Carpeting an entire home, wall to wall, can be really off-putting to potential buyers.  Used carpets never look as good as new again as they harbour a lot of dust and dirt.

One of the first things we did when we moved into our house (a fixer upper) was to rip out the entire carpet.  It looked decades old and I didn’t want to touch it!

Carpets also lack an element of flexibility that you can achieve with a hard floor.  Whilst replacing an entire carpet comes at a huge expense and isn’t something most people would do often, replacing a rug on a hard floor to update décor is much easier and affordable.

Many people prefer the softness of carpet underfoot, but the freedom and flexibility a soft rug on a hard floor can provide.  It can be moved room to room, moved out of the way to clean and some thinner styles may even fit in a washing machine - something that can never be done with a carpet!

If you are going to carpet a room then the bedroom is your best bet.  Some people do prefer a thick pile carpet in their room for a more luxurious and cosy feel, but still, they probably don’t want someone else’s old carpet! 

So perhaps just skip the expense of installing a new carpet and take a slight loss on the house sale as it’s likely the new owners may wish to choose their own bedroom carpet!

Opt for a professional carpet clean instead, if you are selling a house with carpets, to ensure they look as good as can be and not off-putting to buyers who don’t have any home improvement plans in place.

Should I install new flooring for a house sale?

This really depends on the quality of your home and flooring.  If your entire home is dated and in need of repair then it’s going to be a fixer upper for the buyer and it’s probably a waste of your money only updating the flooring.

Either spruce up the whole place to aim for a higher sale price or accept it’s going to sell with a need to update.

If your property is in good nick, but the carpets and flooring is letting it down then it could be a worthwhile investment to get a better sale price.

Ultimately, if you are able to install a type of hardwood floor yourself to a high quality then this will drastically reduce your expense and should see a good ROI.  Just don’t install cheap laminate and make sure you choose something high quality that appeals to buyers and will stand the test of time.