The Best Flooring Options for Rental Properties

When deciding on flooring for rental properties, landlords must think differently than if they were shopping for their own home. Instead of prioritizing personal wants and needs, a landlord must think of the flooring as an investment in the financial future of their property. For landlords, flooring in a rental property should be durable, low maintenance, and attractive. 

In this blog post, we’ll outline the top three flooring options for rental units while discussing the pros and cons of each.     

Luxury Vinyl 

Pros: 

Luxury vinyl is a beautiful flooring option that can mirror other, more expensive options like stone or hardwood, but at a much more palatable price tag. The sleek and modern look of luxury vinyl flooring might be a draw for certain tenants looking for something a bit more contemporary. From a cost perspective, luxury vinyl is more expensive than something like carpet but considerably more affordable than hardwood or stone. With the average lifespan of luxury vinyl lasting anywhere from 15-20 years, it’s quite durable. 

Cons: 

With luxury vinyl, landlords may have to pay more than other flooring options on this list, but with that cost comes increased durability. Some tenants may also find that luxury vinyl flooring, in some areas of the home like the bedroom, is not quite as comfortable as soft & warm carpet flooring.   

Carpet

Pros:

Carpet flooring is a popular option for rental properties as it boasts several benefits. Carpet is comfortable, warm, and sound absorbent, all desirable traits for tenants. Moreover, many tenants are familiar with carpet and expect it in select home areas, like the bedroom, as previously mentioned. Perhaps, the most significant benefit of carpet flooring from a landlord’s perspective is the cost: carpet is a highly affordable flooring option. 

Cons:

For landlords, the number one issue with carpet flooring in a rental property is its lack of durability and required level of maintenance. Carpet flooring does not last as long as other flooring materials. While this is reflected in the lower price tag, landlords should expect that their carpet will need to be replaced every ten years or so. Carpet is also not especially pet or child friendly as spills can lead to stains, leading to eyesores. With carpet, the onus is on tenants to maintain their flooring by vacuuming regularly and ensuring that any spills do not turn into lingering stains. This level of tenant responsibility can be frightening to some landlords. 

Laminate

Pros: 

Laminate is another solid flooring option for landlords as it is beautiful and relatively low maintenance. While perhaps not as durable as luxury vinyl, laminate comes at a lower cost and offers a reasonably solid return on investment when considering price versus longevity. As an added benefit, laminate is easy to install and can sometimes be installed over existing flooring, saving landlords money on the potential removal of existing flooring. 

Cons: 

Perhaps the most significant downside to laminate flooring is its vulnerability to moisture damage. While certain types of laminate may combat this better than others, laminate should generally not be trusted to hold up well in high moisture areas, which means that laminate is not a good choice for bathrooms or laundry areas. Another possible negative with laminate is that it is challenging to fix when damaged.

As a landlord, the flooring you select for your property will significantly impact the type of tenants you attract while also affecting the long-term value of your property. Whether you decide to go with luxury vinyl, carpet, laminate, or another flooring option, so long as your choice aligns with overall goals in owning the property, you can’t go wrong. 

To learn more about the best flooring options for rental properties or to browse our selection of luxury vinyl, carpet, or laminate, contact the team at Flooring 101 today!