How to Buy Hardwood Floors on a Budget

Installing hardwood floors on a budget is easier than you may think. If you walk into the big-box, home-improvement stores and browse through the hardwood-flooring aisle, you choices are sparse, and the prices are high. You will be presented with a few options, and most will cost $5 a square foot and up. But your options for hardwood flooring on a budget don't end there.

Many lumber suppliers and flooring discounters offer options that will undercut the prices of the big box stores by a significant amount. The flooring discounters buy in bulk and many times even purchase directly from the lumber mills. Some hardwood flooring choices may be from a mill that has gone bankrupt, some may be referred to as shorts were the average plank length in lower than most other bundles, some of the flooring may be unfinished. Most of the options will save you a lot of money.

When a lumber mill goes under or a flooring producer goes under, something has to be done with the excess inventory. It is typically bought up by a flooring discounter such as Lumber Liquidators and sold at almost unbelievable prices. This is where you are able to purchase and install your hardwood flooring on a budget.

What should you expect at a flooring discounter? You should expect to receive great service. Their staff that sells only flooring is highly skilled in the area and can help you out. You should also expect a tremendous selection in hardwood flooring. My local store has at least 100 different choices in hardwood flooring. But most of all, you should expect great discount and you will be able to find hardwood flooring that fits into your tight budget. Choosing your hardwood flooring will be the hard part as the selection may seem overwhelming, but you are almost guaranteed to find a hardwood flooring option that you like and that fits in your budget.

Now on to installing the flooring. If you are handy, you can save a lot of money be installing the hardwood flooring yourself. If you choose a pre-finished hardwood, the install only involves cutting the planks and nailing them down, oversimplified of course. The average do-it-yourselfer could do a 200 square foot bedroom in pre-finished hardwood in only a day with the help of a friend.

If you are on a budget, and are comfortable using a table saw, circular saw, flooring nailer, staple gun, hammer, and a few other essentials, installing your own hardwood floor will be a breeze.

Hardwood flooring adds value to your home and doesn't have to cost as much as many people think. If you search for the right deals and install it yourself, you could cover an entire 1000 square foot house for as little as $2,000 or a bedroom for as little as $300. Hardwood flooring could cost significantly less than carpet and will last for 100 years or more.

Hardwood flooring adds beauty and warmth to any home and by shopping smart you too can have hardwood for less than you think.