When you buy an investment property, you’re buying all that comes within it! It makes sense that you want an affordable and durable real estate property unless you’re going for high-end real estate, which is a completely different story! Now, we’re going to dive deeply into the best flooring options for a rental property to help guide the novice real estate investor to make an informed real estate investment decision.
3 points to keep in mind when shopping for new flooring for a rental property
You are a real estate investor trying to make money in real estate!
Making money in real estate is the goal! When you’re buying a rental property, in many cases, you will have to renew the floors. If you’re in that situation, you don’t want to go for an expensive choice like marble or natural stone. You want an affordable option that will withstand wear and tear.
Keep in mind that installing a new floor is a cost that the real estate investor has to endure. Accordingly, this cost is going to eat through your profits and rental income if you’re not careful.
Take the function of every room into consideration
This is an important one for real estate investors! You definitely don’t want carpeted floors in a bathroom or basement! Make sure to match each room within your investment property with the best flooring option considering functionality.
Tenants are going to put your rental property’s floors through a lot!
This is where durability hits hard! When shopping for the best flooring options for your rental property, you want a flooring option that looks good overall and withstands a lot. You don’t want to be changing floors in between tenants. In any case, if the flooring option is not durable, you will have to incur extra costs if the property is occupied.
Related: 9 Rental Property Expenses Real Estate Investors Shouldn’t Forget.
What to look for when considering flooring options for a rental property
To start, choosing the best flooring options for a rental property is a whole different story than choosing flooring options for your own residence. To make things a tad easier for you, we’ve gathered the best qualities to look for in flooring options. The list below should get the idea across:
Low maintenance
A low maintenance flooring option is a floor that does not require the real estate investor to constantly wax it, oil it, or fluff it. When talking about flooring options for a rental property, real estate investors must be aware of the fact that tenants will most likely not perform maintenance tasks on the property. More often than not, landlords and real estate investors are stuck with performing maintenance jobs on the property during vacancy times. The lowest maintenance flooring option would be carpet or tiles.
Affordable
The affordability of a flooring option relies on the costs of the flooring material, installation costs, and constant maintenance costs. Combine the three costs together and you will get the efficiency and affordability of that flooring option. Of course, with many flooring options, you will get high-end products and more affordable options. With affordability, the most efficient options remain to be tiles and carpeted floors.
Looking for affordable real estate investments? Read this blog post: Most Affordable Locations for Buying Vacation Home Rentals in the Florida Real Estate Market in 2018.
Durability
Durability is what you need in any flooring option. In other words, durability is the flooring option’s ability to withstand constant foot traffic and future movements. In any case, when looking for flooring options for a rental property, durability should never leave your mind as a real estate investor. When comparing for durability, you get Vinyl floors and laminate as the most durable!
Aesthetically pleasing
Of course, the looks must meet your tenant’s expectations. You don’t want an outdated print or shag carpeting. You want a nice, minimal and modern looking rental property. Expert interior designers always advice to go for nudes and subtle colors that will blend in with any type of furniture the tenant might bring along!
Another major point to keep in mind is to make sure that the flooring option is the same for the entire floor plan! You don’t want to have different tiles or carpets for each room in your investment property.
Easy to install
Installing any flooring option is going to be a messy job! With different real estate properties, you will get an experience for different types of flooring options. Installing floors depends on how fast you can supply the flooring material and how long it would take to install them. Keep in mind that installing them is going to incur costs, so factor that in with your research!
Safe
Safety should be on the top of your list when reviewing the best flooring options for a rental property. After all, you don’t want lawsuits on your hands just because your tenant slipped on that stained concrete floor you installed a month ago!
The best flooring options for rental properties
Carpet
Carpet is a great flooring option for insulating any room and increasing energy efficiency. Additionally, if you own multi-family rental properties, it’s a great way to reduce noise throughout the property.
The downsides of having carpeted floors in an investment property would be the stains and odors! This is an important one if you own pet-friendly rental properties. Additionally, carpeted floors are hard to clean, and maintenance is usually required to do a large patch-up operation.
Wondering how to make your rental properties pet-friendly? Read this blog post: How to Succeed as a Landlord with Pet-friendly Rental Properties.
Tile
Tile is a versatile and widely popular flooring option. It’s waterproof, easy to clean, and ranges in affordability from one option to another. On the other hand, tiles can crack, the grout might need replacing or cleaning every once in a while, and it has more expensive installation costs. The best places to install tile in a rental property would be the bathroom, kitchen, and basement.
Hardwood
There are very few flooring options more aesthetically appealing than hardwood floors! Hardwood floors can last forever when taken care of. They are easy to clean and can be refinished for a brand-new look! On the other hand, hardwood dents and scratches easily, and it’s an expensive option. We recommend that you read thoroughly about this flooring option before considering it. The best places for a hardwood floor would be the living room, dining room, and bedrooms. Generally, any place with less foot traffic is preferable.
Laminate
Laminate flooring is the “poor man’s hardwood floors.” With many options and shades available in the market today, real estate investors are pursuing this option because it’s more affordable than hardwood, easier to install, and resistant to scratches. Of course, the downsides remain that it does not live as long as real hardwood floors and you cannot refinish it as you would do to hardwood floors. Laminate floors are best for high traffic areas such as kitchens, living rooms, or dining rooms.
Vinyl
Vinyl may not be the best flooring option for rental properties, but it offers good qualities to be considered. Vinyl floors are affordable, easy to install and clean, and water resistant. On the other hand, it can tear easily and can be susceptible to mildew.
Cork
Cork is not the most popular flooring option available out there, but it offers great qualities compared to other options on the market today. Cork floors are green products that reduce noise and are easily installed. Of course, cork floors must be resealed every once in a while to ensure no water damage occurs.
Linoleum
Linoleum is not the best flooring option for residential properties to begin with. However, it’s a flooring option and deserves to be reviewed equally! The best thing about linoleum is the fact that it’s a green product that’s very affordable and durable. The best place to use linoleum would be kitchens and basements!
Final words
These were our top flooring options for a rental property! So, if you’re a real estate investor and have found that you have a flooring situation to take care of, make sure to make the affordable decision that ensures long-term durability. After all, real estate investing is all about calculating expenses and cutting them down to a minimum to ensure you’re making money in real estate!
If you have any more insights on flooring options for rental properties, please share them with us in the comments section!
