Renovating your office space or home is exciting, but it can also be overwhelming if you don’t have a solid game plan in place. We know you’re probably itching to dive in, but it’s critically important to spend time on the planning and preparation phase, which is where is any renovation project starts. Think of your plan like the foundation of your business or your home: it supports everything else, so it has to be done right. Once you’ve identified your top tasks and priorities — for example, whether you need to get any permits, or how you’re going to allocate your budget — you should hire an experienced professional for help executing your vision. Hiring a professional, such as an electrician, plumber, or flooring installer, ensures better safety, better efficiency, and in the long run, better value.

Depending on your renovations, upgrades to one room could impact another — literally. For example, removing a wall will affect other rooms, which makes it important to get the order right. However, the “best” or “correct” order is different for every project, because every renovation involves different steps and tasks. Some renovations are deep and extensive, while others are light and cosmetic. Whether you just want to spruce things up with some style updates, or you’re looking for a complete home makeover, your flooring is a great place to start. Floors tie a room together, set a mood for the space, and in some cases, even increase property values.

The timeline to replace flooring depends on what types of floors are being covered or removed, what they’re being covered or replaced with, and the size of the affected area. Our professional flooring installation team will be in and out of your business or home before you know it. We work around your schedule, making any of our installation processes stress-free and convenient to fit your lifestyle.

The best flooring to use in a kitchen is flooring that is durable and water-resistant, with options like:

• Tile
• Hardwood
• Luxury Vinyl (LVP)
  
• Laminate

Your ideal kitchen floors should also fit into your budget range and be in a color and style that you love. While shopping for your dream kitchen floors, you’ll want to keep the following in mind:

• Durability

The kitchen is often the room in your house that receives the most activity. Therefore, durability is key, as is ease of cleaning. The more durable and easy-to-maintain your kitchen floor is, the better.

• Water-Resistance Level

Having waterproof or water-resistant floors is so important in the kitchen, where spills and leaks are bound to happen. You’ll want to look for floors that will hold up to accidents.

• Style Preference

Obviously, you want to love your new kitchen flooring. So daydream a bit about your vision for your perfect kitchen. Do you want something modern and bright? Or more rustic — a bit more like a country home? Take into account your square footage, as well as what you’re currently working with in your home when it comes to kitchen furniture, paint colors, and patterns.

• Budget

Budget is, of course, something else to keep in mind. Are you just replacing your kitchen floors or doing an entire design overhaul, with new cabinets and appliances as well? You’ll want to keep in mind delivery and installation costs, too.

Though wallet-friendly laminate flooring and vinyl flooring have many similarities, there are key differences, as well as pros and cons to both flooring options. When deciding which option is best as you shop for new floors, consider the following criteria as you make your decision:

• Price
• Style
• Comfort
• Durability Needs

Laminate or Vinyl: What floor is more expensive?

Both laminate and vinyl flooring are great options for those seeking beautiful new floors on a budget; however, laminate floors tend to be more affordable than vinyl floors, and are especially less expensive than luxury vinyl options.

Style

Both laminate and vinyl flooring have come a long way when it comes to style! Vinyl used to get a bad rap, but these days there are many beautiful luxury vinyl flooring options on the market, and many brands of luxury vinyl floors are designed to mimic both the look and feel of real hardwood, stone, and tile. Laminate flooring is known for its embossing quality, and is offered in a wide range of styles. Laminate floors usually have beautiful patterns, too, making them great in kitchens or entryways. And, similarly to vinyl, many laminate flooring options are now able to convincingly mimic hardwood or stone floors.

Comfort

If how your flooring feels on your bare feet is a top concern, you may be drawn more toward laminate. Laminate flooring has a softer feel than vinyl, so it cushions the foot more when it’s walked on. Vinyl floors are made out of PVCs, or plastic, whereas laminate floors are made out of resin and fiberboard.

Durability

Both vinyl and laminate have long-lasting, durable properties. Vinyl flooring is waterproof, as it’s made from plastic. This makes vinyl an ideal choice for any room in your house that may be prone to stains or the occasional leak, like kitchens or bathrooms. However, many laminate flooring options are now waterproof with advancements in technology. Still, the greater durability and waterproof qualities of vinyl and luxury vinyl flooring are part of why they can be pricier than many laminate options. Overall, both are great options for busy families with high foot-traffic.

Laminate vs. Vinyl

So, which is better — laminate or vinyl? The truth is, both are nice options. If you and your family are on a tighter budget, laminate flooring is hard to beat! Vinyl flooring, especially luxury vinyl or luxury vinyl plank (LVP) is a bit pricier, but a better long-term investment, usually. Both are great options for busy families who need durable, stylish, easy-to-clean floors.

The living room is often the hub of your home, where friends and family gather to relax, read, watch TV, and catch up with each other. When shopping for the best new floors for your ideal living room, the following should be kept in mind:

• Budget
• Design: What trends interest you?
• Ease of Install
• How You’ll Use the Room

Wallet-Friendly Floors

Your budget will certainly have an impact on what type of flooring you choose for your living room. Hardwood floors in a living room are certainly an elegant, timeless option. They are often expensive, but they are a wonderful long-term investment. If you love the look of hardwood but are searching for a more budget-friendly option, luxury vinyl or laminate can be a great fit. Carpet is another great living room flooring option that is cheaper than hardwood — and it’s usually more comfortable!

Beautiful Living Room Design

Design is another key element to consider when choosing the best flooring for your living room. Explore magazines and blogs to get inspired. Do you like a more rustic or traditional feel? If so, perhaps hardwood or luxury vinyl, with some area rugs spread throughout, is a good choice. Or maybe you want something homier and family-friendly, like cozy carpet, with lots of blankets, family photos, and candles around. Whether you are leaning toward a modern trend or something more classic, there’s a living room flooring option to suit your design desire.

Easy Install

Choosing a living room floor that is easy to install is a priority for many homeowners. Options like engineered vinyl planks or luxury vinyl planks are best for those who are handy and love a DIY job — these click-in flooring options can be installed relatively easily, as they float over the sub-floor.

A Lived-In Living Room

Another important consideration for your living room flooring option is your family’s needs, aka how you plan to use to the room. If you have young kids, and see your living room as a place for lots of running (and tumbling) around, carpet is probably your best choice. That being said, many luxury vinyl options also offer a great foot-feel. And if ease of cleaning is top of mind, hardwood and laminate can be great choices, too. There are so many flooring options these days that are kid-proof, pet-proof, and waterproof.

Elegant hardwood floors are many homeowners’ dream, but their hefty price tag, not to mention the upkeep, can have many shoppers looking for a comparable alternative. Thankfully, flooring that looks like wood is achievable! Here are the best options if you’re looking for floors that replicate the look of wood, at a fraction of the cost:

• Luxury Vinyl
• EVP
• Laminate
• Ceramic Wood

Luxury Vinyl

Luxury vinyl continues to grow in popularity as a flooring choice for those searching for that hardwood look at a discount. Sophisticated luxury vinyl flooring is able to look so much like real wood because the top layer of the floors is basically a design layer with a photographic image of wood laid on top. Modern luxury vinyl floors are also made up of more layers than regular vinyl floors, making them more durable and firm. The strong foot-feel of luxury vinyl, coupled with the photo-realism of the print, makes it both look and feel very similar to real wood floors.

EVP Flooring

A subset of luxury vinyl, engineered vinyl plank (EVP) flooring, is luxury vinyl floor made out of — you guessed it — engineered planks. This allows EVP flooring to closely mimic the look of real wood floors. EVP floors are also made out of a more rigid core, so they are known to be more durable than regular luxury vinyl plank floors, and thus are slightly more expensive. Whether for your kitchen, bathroom, or bedroom, EVP is a great option for wood-look floors.

Laminate

Laminate is another great alternative to attain wood-look flooring. Available in both sheet laminate and wood-look-tile form, there are many durable faux wood laminate options on the market that are designed and textured to look like their natural wood counterparts. Even better? Laminate is definitely a cheaper flooring option when compared to real hardwood costs.

Ceramic or Porcelain Wood

Ceramic or porcelain wood, otherwise known as wood-look flooring, is made from ceramic or porcelain powder that is shaped into tiles once the powder is moistened and then solidified. The two materials are very similar, though porcelain wood is considered denser and more durable. Both ceramic and porcelain wood floors are continuing to grow in popularity, and many people love them for outdoor areas.

When considering the cost of installing hardwood floors vs. carpet, you need to factor in:

• Price of Raw Materials
• Installation Costs
• Size of Room
• Style Needs

What Brand?

How much your flooring job will cost very much depends on the brand of flooring you choose! For carpet, you can expect to spend anywhere from $2–$11 per square foot, whereas for hardwood flooring cost, you’ll spend about $6–$14 per square foot. As these wide ranges in pricing show, for both carpet and hardwood floors, there are many great brands to choose from depending on if you’re looking for high-end or more budget-friendly floors. Flooring America offers an amazing breadth of choices in both of these flooring types, so no matter where your budget lies, you’ll find the perfect fit.

Installation

The cost to install hardwood floors ranges from about $2,500–$6,000, depending on the size of the room and other factors. And for carpets, it’s about $700–$2,500. Though this may seem like a lot, DIY jobs can be a huge hassle once undertaken, and it’s usually best to leave this very important job to the seasoned professionals! Another thing to remember about hardwood floors: They last forever (well, almost) and have an amazing resale value. Hence, the pricier initial investment.

Area of Home

Obviously, how much of your home you’ll be installing your new floors in will factor into the cost. Though hardwood is technically more expensive than carpet, if you’re installing carpet in a very large living room or basement, it could end up being the same investment as installing hardwood floors in a smaller dining room or study.

Design

Something to consider if you have your heart set on hardwood floors is looking into luxury vinyl. Many modern luxury vinyl floors today closely mimic the look and feel of real hardwood at a fraction of the cost.