The Wood Floor Buyer’s Rights

Buying wood flooring can be a depressing experience, unless you realize that you have a few rights, like:

I. You Have the Right to a Fair Price on Wood Flooring

Wood flooring is not an unusual flooring choice. It is a common building material and is subject to the laws of a competitive marketplace. Unless you are interested in exotic wood flooring, you can find a fair price with some research.

II. You Have the Right to a Solid Estimate

Floor estimators can give you a solid estimate–one that doesn’t change during the course of the work. They should not charge for unused boxes of flooring material. Before work begins, they should evaluate potential sub-floor problems that might later change the estimate.

III. You Should Not Have to Pay for an Estimate

Some floor companies charge to come to your house and show you samples and to measure your house. In other words, they want you to pay them to drum up business for them. Can somebody explain the logic?

IV. You Have the Right to Speedy Installation

A crew of two floor installers should finish, or at least make a reasonable effort, to finish one room per day. Prep work such as leveling, repairs, sub-floors, and furniture moving can reasonably slow down this time-table, though.

V. You Have the Right to Services and Items in Addition to the Floor Installation

Why move furniture or rugs if the installers will? Discuss these “extra” items with the salesperson, not the installers. In most cases, the salesperson will throw in “extra” items to make a sale. Make sure these items are added to the contract, though.

VI. You Have the Right to a Clean House

Wood-cutting should be done outside. If wood absolutely must be cut inside, demand that plastic sheeting be put up as a barrier between the work area and the rest of the house.