Selling/Buying a home with hardwood floors

[houseblend]

DH and I installed hardwood floors a couple of months ago to replace the hideous carpet and tile. I love them and they make the house look so much warmer.

The downside is, in the short time we've had them, we've already gotten quite a few scratches. Not deep scratches, but light lines running through the floors. I'm wondering how this will effect selling the home in the future? Will we need to refinish them before we put it on the market? Or will homebuyers realize this is just part of having hardwood floors and not mind so much? Would you buy a home with hardwood floors where there were scratches? Would it change the price you were willing to pay?

[QPDoll]

Have you tried using a floor buffer? We rented one for $20 and it made our floors look a lot better.

[camberne]

We bought our house with hardwood floors a few years ago. It was a dark wood and showed some scratches, but honestly, we didn't really think about it much... they weren't very noticeable. It was after we moved in and noticed more and how it had been dried/bleached by the sun coming in the breakfast nook windows that we decided to replace the dark hard wood with a light colored wood laminate.

There are a LOT of products out right now that will mask/fill scratches, though. You should ask someone at Home Depot or Lowes. They'll direct you in the right direction.

[julietchicago]

Generally, I think most people will understand if there are some markings on hardwood flooring. Some people even like the look of worn looking hardwood floors. It's all a matter of personal taste. I would not worry about it having a huge impact on the future sale of your home. As long as they are not beat to hell, I would think they are fine. ;)

[houseblend]

QPDoll - Does the buffer wear down the wood at all? Is it like refinishing them? We have engineered, so there isn't a lot of room for doing that too many times, if that is what buffering does.

camberne - I'll have to look into those products. That would be great if something worked easily. I think I remember a thread awhile back about OrangeGlo or something?

julietchicago - Thanks for the reassurance! I hope that will be the case. We installed Cherry, so the look is beautiful but they are not the hardest type of floor, so it does scratch easily.

[BrownEyedGirl]

We have hardwood floors in our brand new house...I was worried that I would get freaked out over any scratches, but so far I just shrug my shoulders. I think people are intelligent enough to know that wood will scratch no matter what. I don't think you should worry too much about it.

And if anyone has dogs and hardwood...I would highly reccommend www.softpaws.net They are little rubber caps for the dog nails...that way they soften and dull the nails so it's much harder to scratch. They also have them for cats...that is at www.softpaws.com (there are pictures there too)

[houseblend]

Bree - Do those actually stay on your dog? I'm worried my dog would try to chew them off. Our dog is definitely contributing to the scratches, so that would be a great preventative.

[camberne]

I used softpaws on cat #1, but he literally spent each evening chewing them off.

That's why we opted for the laminate when we replaced the dark wood with light. VERY scratch-resistant.

[BrownEyedGirl]

We've only had them on our dogs for a couple of days...but we haven't had any real problems. Our girl licks her feet every once in awhile and the boy couldn't care less about them. We were really nervous about the dogs chewing them off...but they really don't mind. And putting them on was a breeze...which shocked me since it takes a full day to clip one dog's nails!

[notkk]

When we were looking for our new house, we were specifically seeking out a house with hardwood floors (of course, they also usually come with the package on the old houses that we were interested in). Scratches did not bother us, we were more concerned with staining and water damage. Of course, we also have one dog and two cats with plans to add another (big) dog - so pristine floors are a pipe dream.

Yes, there are people who will be put off by scratches when you put the house on the market, but those aren't the right people for your house. I think most people who are interested in wood floors will understand the wear and tear issues.

On the other hand, we are selling out current place with wood laminate floors to a woman who has wood laminate floors now and doesn't like them (she said that her dogs have destroyed them, and I suspect that she has cheap laminate - because our floors have stood up wonderfully with our pets). So you may also find someone who will buy it inspite of the floors even if they don't like them. :p

[Zelda Von Yitz]

Bree - Do those actually stay on your dog? I'm worried my dog would try to chew them off. Our dog is definitely contributing to the scratches, so that would be a great preventative.

My dog hasn't really done a lot of scratching of the floors.

Here and there, yeah -- and I use some of that touch up stuff that comes in a pencil-like tube and has a foam applicator -- but not a lot.

[houseblend]

My dog is a chewer - has even gone so far as to chew the wood on our windowsills :rolleyes: , so I'm a bit skeptical about what she would do if I actually put something on her paws.

Fortunately we did pick a fairly light wood, so the scratches are not too noticeable, but being as anal as I am, I'm constantly looking at the floor and trying to find scratches. And they are there if you look.

notkk - That's so funny about the lady buying your house anyway. Guess the rest of the house won her over!

Zelda - do you know the name of the stuff you use? Where do you find it?

[notkk]

I just wanted to add one more thing.
We just did the final walkthrough on the new house (closing tomorrow - woo!)...and the floors are actually more scratched than I had noticed. It still doesn't bother me, but it was a reminder that I didn't look that closely/worry too much about that issue when we walked through the house before (and I've been through it 4x before today).

[linekelei]

We have dark hardwood floors (almost black). They aren't even a year old and have quite a few superficial scratches from our dogs' nails, and just everyday life. We were told by the builder and the floor installer that a professional cleaning (recommended once a year) would clear up the scratches, as they were all superficial even though they look lighter than the actual wood. I'm not sure exactly what this means, but I'm assuming they buff them . . .

[Asha]

i actually like hardwood that looks a little worn. sometimes i think hardwood that looks too perfect looks like laminate. the house we bought has a bunch of scratches and dents in the floor but i think it adds character.

[LRL]

I wouldn't worry about any scratches in the hardwood. This is all a part of the hardwood floors life cycle and I really don't think that anyone would not bid on a home because of a couple of scratches in the floors.

To be honest with you, I prefer a floor that is more worn looking that brand new and shiny. I think that there is a lot of character in that, but of course, homes in our area are generally in 60+ year old range with original hardwood floors.

[curlygurl]

I wanted to add a recommendation to use OrangeGlo Hardwood Floor Refinisher.
http://www.whatsinnow.net/sitebuilder/images/orangeglohardwoodsystem2-265x201.jpg
After >3 years of a golden retriever and everday use (especially in the kitchen) my floors were looking very worn. This stuff really has brought them back to life. If you just have some superficial scratches, I'm sure they will look like new after using this.

Although, I wouldn't worry about buyers being too concerned. Sounds like normal wear and tear to me.

[houseblend]

I'm so glad to hear so many of you think that scratches should not be a problem. I'm afraid we already have more than "a few," but they are mostly superficial scratches. I definitely like the "worn look," too, but our house in only 10 years old, so I also wasn't sure if the scratches look odd with the age.

curlygurl - Thanks so much for posting about that product! I will definitely look into that.

[Oakley]

Another one here that's afraid of scratches on the hardwood. We're building a house and our downstairs will primarily be hardwood- a chestnut color. We have two mini dachshunds who love to run and chase each other around. I'm planning on keeping their claws cut short but I think that's the best I can do! It's nice to hear that some people like the look of scratches! :)

[mrspugglesworth]

I live in an apartment with hardwood floors, and we just bought a house with hardwood floors. In both places, the floors are worn and scratched, basically normal wear and tear. It doesn't bother me a bit, and to tell you the truth I barely even looked at the floors in our new house before we bought it. It's completely normal for wood floors to have scratches. I wouldn't worry about it!

[nuhmah]

i actually like hardwood that looks a little worn. sometimes i think hardwood that looks too perfect looks like laminate. the house we bought has a bunch of scratches and dents in the floor but i think it adds character.

I feel the exact same way - which is the part of the reason we are purchasing a home built in 1906.

[Brink]

Just a note that if you have hardwood floors, be careful when you have an open house. I've seen people walk through with heels that are spiked and worn on the bottom and they leave little dents all over the floor. I was at an upscale open house the other day and they had litle booties to put either over your shoes or to take your shoes off and put these on. Sounds really ridiculous, but when people are walking through, they don't care or think about what their shoes are doing. Just a thought.