Thanks Sophie! I knew there had to be a reason. :) That said, I'm on a slab downstairs and then my upstairs obviously has the joists.

Another reason(on concrete/etc.) is flooring looks better when it follows the length of a room. In your case, try cutting out strips of paper and taping them together cross ways to the length. I think you will quickly see that is awkward.

Thanks Handy. I live in a townhouse and recently viewed some sold real estate listings of some of the units that have been remodeled. They are identical units with the two different installations--- one length, one width. I do not care for the lengthwise installs at all. To me it looks like a very long hallway and not a room. Upstairs I will be more mindful because of the joist orientation that Sophie mentioned. Thanks for taking time to answer and I love your suggestion. ☺

Do what makes you feel happy in the basement. If you do not like the look of a bowling alley, then there is no need to do it that way. You will have more runs. More runs have more cuts. More cuts mean more waste. More waste = more money.

More runs means more TIME. More time means more MONEY. So both reasons increase the cost of the project. For most people this double money whammy is enough to cause them to run the floor lengthwise - whether they like it or not.

And please spend the money to fix the slab in the basement. Vinyl must have FLAT. The edges are VERY brittle and will break if there is even a little bit of movement due to uneven subfloors/slabs.

Thanks SJ. I'm in Texas and we call it the first floor, not a basement. :D I want hardwood but will probably go with tile since I want radiant flooring. Laugh if you will, but I'm on a large slab and when it gets damp-cold in Texas it becomes unbearable in that room. Add 14ft celings and 10' windows and brrrr it's chilly! But I get strange looks when I mention radiant flooring around here. :)

And all those off cuts will be used to frame out a few niches in the showers and shelves for kitchen. In theory anyhow.

In my condo, wood floors are installed in either direction and at least in my opinion look fine either way.

It's somewhat six of one half dozen of the other as if you run them down the length of the entry hall then then there would be short lengths at various points including the kitchen - If you run them horizontally in the kitchen there are actually fewer short lengths because of the layout of the units.