Changing the carpet in your Conroe rental home regularly is necessary, but most property owners don’t enjoy it. Have you ever considered eliminating the carpet from your rental home altogether? A growing number of rental property owners are replacing wall-to-wall carpeting with hard-surface flooring. If this concept feels too radical, think about the reasons why fully removing the carpet is beneficial for landlords and tenants.
Carpets may harbor dirt and odor
Keeping carpet clean in a rental home is one of the more challenging aspects. Even if you have the carpets professionally cleaned between tenants, they might not keep them up during their occupancy. Should your tenants stay for many years, the carpets may gather dirt and grime for an extended period.
Carpet fibers are infamous for retaining bad smells, especially if not cleaned properly and often. Even if tenants clean the carpet, they probably prefer not to spend money on professionals or their own time on the task.
On the contrary, hard-surface flooring like laminate or tile is easy to clean. This flooring can be scrubbed to shine in minutes and as frequently as tenants wish to avoid unpleasant stains or smells. Compared to carpet, hard-surface flooring is far more sanitary for children and individuals with respiratory or health issues.
Avoid soaked carpets in case of a flood
Another reason to eliminate carpets is the difficulty of cleaning them after water leaks and floods. Even a minor plumbing issue can cause major flooding, and wet carpets can become a significant problem in a rental house.
Soaked carpets must be pulled up, and the subflooring, pad, and carpeting need to be dried thoroughly to prevent mold. If drying the carpet is not possible, it must be replaced. If a flooding situation isn’t dealt with promptly and properly, you could risk your residents’ health and face severe liability.
Most hard-surface flooring, aside from natural hardwood, is much easier to deal with in a flood. When properly installed, most laminate and vinyl types are highly water-resistant and can be dried efficiently. This means no need for expensive restoration services or floor replacement, just some focused clean-up.
Hardwood floors have a longer lifespan
It’s no surprise that carpets have to be replaced every five years. Some landlords attempt to extend that to seven years or more—typically to their detriment. Most residents don’t enjoy living on old, worn, or stained carpets. If the carpet isn’t regularly replaced, they might consider leaving.
Old carpeting appears unattractive and is frequently hazardous. As carpet ages, tacks can come up from underneath and hurt people walking on them. Cheap carpeting, particularly, doesn’t last more than a few years in rental properties.
Hard-surface flooring, in contrast, has a much longer lifespan. Though tenants could damage hard-surface floors, most tile or laminate flooring will last at least ten to twenty years. Laminate flooring is similarly priced to carpet but needs less frequent replacement, making it a better choice for rentals.
Ditch the outdated look of carpets
Lastly, wall-to-wall carpeting can sometimes give a rental property an outdated appearance. Newer homes often limit carpet to bedrooms or avoid it entirely.
To modernize your rental, think about installing attractive laminate or tile flooring in the main living areas instead of carpet. Unlike carpet, which tenants cannot change, hard-surface flooring allows them to add rugs or other décor items to personalize the space while maintaining cleanliness and longevity.
Modern laminate tile offers a variety of sizes, colors, and patterns, including wood-look tiles that can enhance your rental without the cost and hassle of natural hardwood.
Uncover the advantages of hard-surface flooring for rental properties. Contact Real Property Management Republic at 281-362-5001 or online for cost-saving tips on creating appealing, long-lasting interiors that tenants will love. Our property managers in Conroe specialize in minimizing maintenance costs without compromising tenant appeal.
Originally Published on May 7, 2021
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