Choosing the Right Floors
TOP QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN CHOOSING FLOORING
1. How easy will it be to replace or repair?
2. How expensive and labour-intensive is maintenance?
3. Does this tie in with the rest of the home’ s structural details?
4. Is this a trend, or will it be appealing to buyers and tenants for a long time?
5. How durable do I need it to be? 6. Will this need to be water resistant, or not? 7. Am I concerned about allergies?
8. How important is sustainability and energyefficiency?
9. How much am I looking to spend?
10. Will this add or detract value from the property?
BY MONIQUE DU TOIT
W
hen it comes to aspects of a property, few take as much of a daily beating as your floors. Choosing the right materials and colours can do wonders to your property’ s overall look and feel. So, what do you look for?
Price
As with most things in life, price plays a major role. Depending on your budget, there are several options. More budget-friendly options are typically tiles, carpets, or laminate wood. On the pricier side of the scale, you get beauties like hardwood and porcelain.
It’ s important to take long-term costs into consideration when making your choice. While that cheap carpet is a bargain for now, think about the cost of replacing or cleaning it over the next few years. Hardwood, while beautiful, requires more upkeep than tiles would. In the same way, large porcelain tiles aren ' t as hardy as materials like concrete, so chips and cracks are factors to keep in mind.
28 APRIL / MAY 2018 SA Real Estate Investor Magazine