During the building boom of the late 1990s, developers across the metro area distinguished their designs by putting hardwood floors in the foyers. Buyers who crossed the threshold saw that elegant touch as a nod to quality, and it wasn’t long before they didn’t want to limit that look just to the entry hall.
For the past several years, hardwood floors have taken off as one of the most popular options for what goes under the family’s feet. It’s not just the look, be it the sleek, clean style of bleached boards or the formal, luxurious sheen of dark, rich tones, that they wanted. Advances in wood flooring have made it more affordable, durable and manageable, no matter what room of the house it’s in.
Michael Grant, owner of Modern Rustic Homes in Ellijay, said buyers for his largely custom homes have a broad range of options when it comes to wood, starting with the price.
“Wood might be around $3.50 [a square foot] or $40 on the high end,” he said. “There’s such a huge spread of materials, and what you pick affects the costs. And what you pick depends on each individual’s budget and the aesthetic they want to create.”
On the least expensive side, buyers or remodelers may opt for bamboo or cork, two materials that are readily renewable and available. Cork has the added feature of being a bit softer underfoot, while bamboo offers durability in a wide range of patterns and colors.
At the other end of the spectrum, reclaimed woods are often the most expensive, due to effort required to salvage the material and process it to it a particular plan. “There’s a lot of labor involved in making sure all the nails are pulled out and the wood is planed,” said Grant.
Another option that’s gained a following is pre-finished flooring, often priced around $5 a square foot, said Grant. The wood arrives on the job site already stained, sanded and sealed so it’s easy to install.
“It’s very affordable and comes in a huge variety of aesthetics, so you can find something that looks distressed or very contemporary, like a light maple, depending on the look you want to accomplish,” he said. “We’re also using engineered floors - they usually have plywood below with a thin veneer of wood on top. It’s stable, it’s not going to shrink, and it’s a great look.”
Having hardwoods doesn’t mean floors are limited to shades of brown, said Evanne Brock of Brock Built Homes.
“Our favorite new color of hardwood stain is classic gray. It’s such a compliment to the shades of gray paint, and the gray and white granites. Another fun flooring that we use some is cork, as buyers are drawn to the natural materials. One of our buyers recently requested rubber flooring in the laundry room. It comes in many colors and has patterns, and it gives the home an industrial touch. One of my all-time favorites in flooring is a mixture of tile and hardwood to create patterns, such as four 12 x 12 tiles framed at a diagonal with hardwood.”
Red or white oaks are the most common hardwoods buyers of Kevin Aycock Homes select, said president and owner Kevin Aycock, who builds in price points from around $200,000 into the millions.
“We see buyers who want to keep it natural or go very dark - or anything in between,” said Aycock. “But it’s wood they want. It’s durable and comfortable - something many people grew up with. If you remodel a 1955 ranch, it’s got hardwoods underneath. And hardwoods are just easier, especially for people who have pets and kids.”
While hardwoods are still the number one choice for his clients, Aycock says even those who lean toward carpeting still want wood up in the foyer, up the stairs and on the landing.
“But when you get to bedrooms, most people want carpet,” he said. “And in some cases, people will ask for carpet in the living or family room where kids are playing.”
Carpets usually win out on the second floor of a house, said Grant, where they not only add to the comfort underfoot but also minimize noise.
“Carpet makes things a littler quieter - you don’t hear people walking on it,” he said. “It’s also an option when buyers don’t want to invest in an expensive hardwood floor in a little-used area like a guest bedroom.”
With carpet priced at about half the cost of wood, it’s not surprising that builders often opt for carpet, said Justin Atcheson, president and owner of Builders Floor Covering & Tile, a store with four metro area locations. But recent advances in carpet technology are starting to draw more buyers who may not have considered it before.
“The carpet industry revolutionized during the economic downturn,” said Atcheson. “They reinvented themselves to get people to buy more carpeting. They made the yarn softer but more durable. I think Mohawk has done the best job at that. Their SmartStrand Silk feels incredibly soft. And they now have a stain resistence that’s not just a topical application: SmartStrand has permanent, built-in stain protection. You can pour red wine, juice and ketchup on it, and it comes up.”
Courtney Lancaster of Brock Built Homes has a particular carpet favorite: Shaw’s Caress line. “It’s the softest carpet I think I have ever felt. I wanted to lie down and cuddle with the sample. What is really cool about it is that it’s made from recycled materials, so it is considered a green product. The soil and stain resistant treatment is amazing. It actually creates a barrier around the fibers that prevents them from being penetrated by liquid.”
Technological advances are also expanding the diversity of tile options, said Atcheson.
“What I am seeing more and more of is a classic look using new technology,” he said. “For instance, the latest advancement with tile is HD prints - porcelain tiles that offer beauty and durability while providing a realistic appearance of stone, slate or hardwoods. It takes the same concept as a high-def TV and uses that technology on tiles. The depth of the print is so realistic that you assume there are undulations that aren’t really there.”
That unusual look it drawing more customers to consider tile as an option over wood in some cases, Atcheson added.
“But most of it is being used through kitchens, bathroom and foyers, on the walls and the floors,” he said. “And we haven’t seen anyone charging any more for this process; it’s about the same as regular tile, but buyers are getting a better looking tile for the same money. We’re now seeing natural stones taking a back seat to the porcelain HD print tiles by offering material and labor cost savings and low maintenance.”
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