The flooring trend that could increase your home’s value by £14.3K

Experts identify five flooring trends and assess their impact on buyer appetite and property value

For those looking to sell, investing in in-demand flooring trends could improve your home’s value and make it more attractive to buyers. Factory Direct Flooring identified these trends from year-on-year increases in search and sales data, before speaking to two property valuation experts — Novello Chartered Surveyors and Compare My Move — to understand the impact that these flooring trends and materials could have on your home’s value, and their appeal to prospective buyers.

Here are 5 key trends for floors in 2023:

1. Patterned kitchen flooring:

   “This retro style is re-emerging once again and is particularly popular for fans of maximalist kitchens since it adds yet another dynamic layer to the mix and oozes personality, energy, and expression. Jewel colors are particularly popular and make a bold statement. Meanwhile, black and white checkerboard flooring is set to be one of this year’s 2023’s hottest trends, especially in kitchens, but also in bathrooms and hallways. In fact, Google searches for this trend have grown by 53% year-on-year, with 260k monthly UK searches,” said Paul Hambidge, Managing Director at Factory Direct Flooring.

   Dave Sayce, CEO at Compare My Move, added: “Patterned tiles are becoming increasingly popular, especially in kitchens and bathrooms. While some people choose to stick to one colour and pattern, others are choosing to mix up a variety of styles. Patterned tiles are for those looking to add boldness to their property, from creating an interesting kitchen backsplash to adding character to a bathroom.”

2. Modern, soft, neutral flooring:

   “Some design professionals suggest that industrial-feeling concrete floor styles are on their way out and being replaced by light, soft and pale marble designs, which can give a Mediterranean vibe. But at least for now, they remain equally popular. Searches for ‘concrete flooring’ and ‘marble flooring’ are neck and neck, with around 4.4k monthly UK searches,” said Simon Golder, Product Analyst at Factory Direct Flooring.

3. Herringbone is here to stay:

   “Also referred to as chevron, laying flooring in a herringbone pattern – especially wood – is undeniably popular. Looking at Instagram alone, there are over half a million posts tagged #herringbone. While it’s effective in any room, it has a real wow factor in the kitchen and compliments different design styles, from shaker and farmhouse kitchens to more modern, cleaner cabinet lines and quartz worktops,” said Simon Golder, Product Analyst at Factory Direct Flooring. “Herringbone is in high demand and continues to grow. For instance, our sales of real wood herringbone designs have grown by nearly 41% year-on-year.”

   James Brook, Managing Director at Novello Chartered Surveyors said: “Herringbone flooring is still really popular. I have seen cases where clients reclaim original parquet. A number of years ago, people would rip up the original 60s parquet, whereas now buyers are discovering this under carpets and restoring it. In older properties, the original parquet can also cause issues if removed, as sometimes the bitumen adhesive acts as the damp proof membrane and can contain asbestos.”

   If you’ve discovered original parquet under your carpet, take a look at Factory Direct Flooring’s tips on restoring original wooden parquet floors for trying this at home.

4. Real wood flooring:

“Customer searches for ‘real wood flooring’ on our site has grown by 133% in the last year. Natural materials and textures help to create a calming, peaceful and grounding aesthetic, and there’s nothing like real wood flooring to achieve this. The soft and natural appearance is ideal for balancing out any shiny surfaces, such as on worktops or cabinets, and the exposed natural grain gives extra grip. It’s also a great choice if you want flooring to raise your home’s value. While it’s more costly than the likes of laminate and LVT/LVP, and can require more cleaning and maintenance to care for it properly, real wood flooring is still one of the most sought-after among prospective buyers,” said Chris Pane, Flooring Surveyor at Factory Direct Flooring. “Realtor reported that wood floors can boost the sales price of your home by as much as 2.5%, and deliver a 70-80% return on investment, while another study that used analysis of Rightmove listings estimated a property value increase of 3.33% from real wood flooring.”

Dave Sayce, CEO at Compare My Move suggests the property value increase could be even higher if the wood floor is in immaculate condition: “Research shows that hardwood floors could potentially increase the value of a home up to around 5% in some instances.” Based on the average UK property price, that’s a £14.3K boost in value. He added: “Real wooden flooring is always a popular choice amongst prospective buyers. It’s not only timeless, but it’s durable too. Real wooden floors are certainly great when investing in a property due to them being easy to clean and they also help to add character to a property.”

Meanwhile, James Brook, Managing Director at Novello Chartered Surveyors, said that the overall impact real wood flooring can have on property value varies depending on the property itself, and its location: “[The ROI of real wood flooring] will vary from place to place; a buyer in Chelsea would expect high-end solid wood flooring, whereas a buyer in a suburban area would normally be satisfied with good quality modern laminate […] Having modern wood flooring can really finish off a property; for instance, if you spent a lot of money on a new kitchen, it would make no sense to leave this sitting on an old floor.”

5. Continuity:

“The days of different rooms in the house having very different personalities are long gone. Now, there’s a trend for flow and continuity throughout the entire home. While it’s not specific to a type of flooring, those replacing their existing flooring in one room should devote more attention to how their choice complements other floors in neighboring rooms, especially where the thresholds meet. The trick here is not to try for an exact match, because unless you can get hold of exactly the same line of flooring, a near-match will always draw unwanted attention for being slightly ‘off’. Instead, think about how your choice will complement the style of floor it meets at the threshold to another room or hallway. For instance, if you have limestone in your corridor, consider picking out another natural material, like real wood, with a grain that matches the darker flecks in the limestone,” advises Paul Hambidge, Managing Director at Factory Direct Flooring.

James Brook at Novello Chartered Surveyors agrees. He added: “I am also seeing matching paving and flooring used to create continuity between the garden and living areas where you have large folding doors.”

Carpets “can be off-putting”

Meanwhile, a flooring type that’s well on its way out is carpet. Dave Sayce, CEO at Compare My Move, explains: “While carpets can be great if they are new, clean, and in line with current housing trends, they can be off-putting if they are old and outdated. Many people buying a home will want to replace carpets, especially if they are unclean and worn.”