This forum tends to prefer hardwood over LVP and i can understand all the reasons for the preference (we’ve always lived in old houses so have had hardwood) we’re building a 4/4 lakehouse that will be filled with water, dogs and kids and so will be doing LVP -

it is a very stressy purchase bc with hardwood I feel like there’s more flexibility w/stain etc whereas LVP - you better love it when you install it or you’re out of luck. Also there are so many more trendy finishes that I think it’s good to watch out for - FWIW there is an LVP facebook group where people ask questions, share photos etc and I’ve been lurking in there so learn more about the product - one thing I have learned: when you get to your final selection buy a whole box and lay it out to make sure you’re comfortable with the patterns and repeats - that’s where folks can get caught. Good luck with your project!

If you haven’t already checked out Shaw’s Titan HD Plus Platinum it’s worth looking into. The online reviews sold me. I ordered a box of the essential white & absolutely love the look of it. It‘s a nice warm white oak. I grabbed a stainless steel skewer from the kitchen & scratched the plank with much force & it didn’t leave a mark! It’s a waterproof WPC, 12 mm thick, 30 mil wear layer, attached underlayment & has 10 unique plank visuals. Unfortunately, my house is more traditional & as much as I wanted to love this floor in my space, it just didn’t work with my colors. I wish Shaw would make more color options of this particular flooring that would fit more traditional interiors. I’m now cosidering waterproof laminate. I ordered a sample of McMillan’s Evolved series in Niobe. 300 hours waterproof. I ordered a sample, skewered it (did not scratch), dropped a can of soup on it from about 4 feet (the can landed on it’s corner, dented the can but did nothing to the floor), then my husband smacked it several times with a hammer, with force (The hammer did break the surface, but whose going to be hammering on their floor! 😄 I placed it in a bucket of water half submered. it’s been in there 3 days now & no swelling

Personally not a fan of plastic for environmental, off-gassing and aesthetic reasons. I prefer solid wood, with engineered for basements. The laminate and engineered all seem to get discontinued, but you can always get wood, even if it requires custom milling.

In our area hardwood is preferred. One option might be to install hardwood, knowing you may need to get it refinished before you sell.

We have Mannington Revival wide-plank waterproof laminate throughout our highrr-end house. It's beautiful and no one has ever asked, "Is this laminate?" They comment on how much they like our wide-plank hardwoods. Sometimes we correct them and sometimes we don't. :-)

We also have Mannington wide-plank white oak laminate in our basement, and European wide plank engineered wood on the main level. They look nice together, but of course the laminate doesn't feel the same. Very happy with it ...I was worried about the word "laminate" but this isn't your 90's laminate ;) Great with kids and a large dog. PS. Neighborhood has large lots, large homes and inground pools...not worried after I saw it installed. LVP was a definite no for me.

I think you do what works for you. You aren't going to leave standing water or puddles on any floor, right? You have walk off mats, you will have area rugs. Whether those lie on LVP, engineered or sold product? Seems irrelevant. You're building for you, and not some next person you do not know. What if THAT person had three dogs, and one was fun loving , rambunctious Goldendoodle?!

I think there are fantastic LVP selections, and same in engineered pre finished that of course can survive at least two refinishes. Many are more resistant to obvious scratching, depending species, and color, and how fine or rustic the selection.

Point? There is no right/wrong, and the look of luxury? That comes from other quality materials in cabinetry, in doors and their hardware, in lighting, and all important windows! In quality of the build itself. But you already knew that : )

I think an upscale laminate is a reasonable selection for a $800k home.

I love it when people insist on authentic stone for countertops & become a slave to that material, but will put vinyl on the floor because they want something indestructible.

Just chiming in we have dogs and grandkiddos (both messy and scratchy)and we are very happy with mirage hardwood, the cashmere finish. It hides everything.

800K isn't all that upscale in most areas anymore. What determines if it's an upscale home is it's percentile in the market. Are 85% of the rest of the homes in the market under 800K? Then zero plastic floors of any kind, ever. Unless it's a wet basement. It's the 75-85 percentiles that can go both ways, but generally go towards natural materials because they are aspirational.

I'm in FL and prices near the water are in the millions and for several years now some of them have been built/sold with LVP floors. In my neighborhood lots of older homes are being remodeled and most are still going with engineered wood and tile, with a few choosing LVP. The newer homes in the neighborhood have engineered wood or tile.

We went with engineered wood floors and have 3 dogs, 2 in the 60 lb range. The floors are a medium brown with some character/texture and we are really impressed with how well they are performing after 2 years in the house. I'm glad I didn't get talked into the LVP.

Duchateau, Riverstone collection, color Sava, with Hard-wax Oil finish.

*sigh* I would much prefer engineered wood (love yours Chispa!) DH has his eye on a very nice boat ~ and all the adult kids/boys in the family say [boat > flooring] lol

Around me, in a HCOLA, homes that sell over $3M will often/sometimes have LVP or laminate. It may just depend on your local real estate market.

I feel like when homes get really high end, buyers wouldn't really care too much about the flooring material, because they can afford to switch it out if they want to.

We put in 9" engineered oak (most of the downstairs) and I love the look of the floors, years later, and I had looked hard at LVP at the time. Coretec's LVP product was new-ish at the time, and the selection wasn't big enough for me to love any of the options, plus it was a pretty new product, so there was some uncertainty. While I still like the wood floors, I wish I had waited and done LVP, because we have 4 dogs, definitely live an indoor/outdoor lifestyle, and big family who aren't really ever going to be able to be meticulous about anything in the house (me included).

So, I would do the LVP. I don't see any advantage of laminate over LVP, but you have done your research, I guess. I would always choose a lighter or medium, realistic looking tone that will be interpreted as a neutral, if you do plan on selling, and for yourself to coordinate all the finishes.

After all, you don't know what future buyers will want, but you do know what the current owner will want!

Not every lvp has the same scratch resistance. This video tests some with a butter knife.

There will be variation for engineered flooring finishes. There is added value to engineered wood flooring for some for aesthetics reasons. I'd be in that group. Not everyone is. If you choose lvp do not rely on a sample for tone variation and pattern repeat. Buy a box and lay it all out.

I think it is super dependent on your area. In my area 800k barely gets you a two bedroom condo so lvp and laminate are all you see. Even in homes worth millions you will still see laminate. I think a good laminate like mohawk revwood is a good choice, I would not do lvp but that is more from a health and sustainability angle

We have recently had our whole home upgraded to high end laminate and it looks great, cleans great, and is extremely durable. But, BIG issue, if you have dogs, especially senior dogs, DO NOT USE ANY OF THESE PRODUCTS. They are so slippery 2 of our senior dogs injured themselves. We now have throw rugs, EVERYWHERE, to try and keep them safe. Just BEWARE of this when making a decision. Bob G

Curious what flooring you ended up with?