Removing carpet to show hardwood floors is a step in the right direction. You may be pleasantly surprised by the relatively low cost of refinishing hardwood, so it’s usually an investment that gets a strong ROI. It will certainly help sell your house faster. Few other flooring options even come close to hardwood in popularity, and then only in niche markets like Florida where ceramic tile runs a close second. However, ceramic is also one of the more expensive options available. Between budget, comfort, and ease of installation and care there are several factors to consider in favor of hardwood. CARPET Carpeting is the flooring that most of us grew up with. While hardwood had been the norm for many years prior, during the second half of the 20th century carpet quickly overcame bare wood, covering our bedrooms, living rooms, and even creeping into dining and bathroom areas. While carpeting has fallen out of favor in recent years, and is not the ideal seller it once was, carpet does still has many positive qualities. These include the fact that it absorbs sound better than any other option on the market, making it nice if you have young children or pets. Speaking of young children, they tend to fall down a lot and carpet provides a much softer impact. It also retains heat better than a harder option, and is more comfortable to walk on when barefoot in general — both perks in colder environments. Finally, it is considerably less expensive than many other options at $2-15 per square foot according to the World Floor Covering Association (WFCA). There are drawbacks, perhaps most visible among them the difficulty of keeping carpeting clean. Every bit of food that is dropped and speck of dirt that is tracked into the house can get ground deep into the carpet if not immediately cleaned, and will prove reluctant to come back out. Pet stains can alter the color and leave an odor that can linger for a long time after. In recent years, a related problem has come to the fore. The fact the carpets retain so much of the surrounding environment means that they also retain allergens and have been blamed for exacerbating allergy
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