Sprucing Up Your Home on a Budget

<h2 style="margin: 10pt 0in 0pt">Sprucing Up Your Home on a Budget</h2>(ARA) – With existing home sales lagging and new home construction sales soft, many Americans are making the decision to sit tight in their existing homes – but that doesn’t mean they’re taking their living space for granted.Room makeovers are actually on the increase, as today’s homeowners are now looking for ways to improve their surroundings – if the price is right. This means they are redoing their rooms that they spend the most time in, and with building materials that provide a high-end appearance, but won’t break the bank. <div style="text-align: center"><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,29,0" width="425" height="282"><param name="movie" value="../images/banners/12a.swf" /><param name="quality" value="high" /><param name="menu" value="false" /><param name="wmode" value="" /><embed src="../images/banners/12a.swf" wmode="" quality="high" menu="false" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="282"></embed></object></div> According to a recent report by The Wall Street Journal, if consumers want to sell their home (or instead decide they want to stay there) they should spend their limited dollars on such things as a new paint job and other general room makeover projects which cost-effectively can rejuvenate their old abode. So adding a fresh coat of paint, replacing that worn linoleum floor and adding some new shades can do wonders to invigorate a room. "Painting and new flooring are two of the most immediate, easy-to-do and affordable makeovers in a home," says Tom Kraeutler, host of the nationally syndicated radio show The Money Pit. "In fact, we get more questions about flooring than any other home product on our show." Nothing dates a room like an out-of-style, worn or stained floor. Yet today’s flooring is easy and quick to install and a great way to stretch decorating dollars while delivering striking results. If you haven’t been floor shopping lately, there are a number of new, cost-effective options. Consumers are about style, design and performance, and more and more, are choosing alternative flooring options, such as laminate and resilient sheet (also known as vinyl) flooring. According to a recent report by flooring trade journal Floor Covering Weekly, in 2008 the vinyl flooring category is projected to grow 10.6 percent and laminate flooring sales, according to the 2008 U.S. Floor Report, are expected to increase to 6.7 percent of the residential market by the year 2012. So why are laminate and resilient sheet flooring products becoming such a popular alternative? "There are many attractive features to today’s laminate and resilient flooring. Both offer superior style and durability while also being a great value. This means homeowners can spend less time worrying about their floors and enjoy the extra time for their day-to-day living," says Gary Finseth, Tarkett Residential marketing director. "Laminate and resilient sheet flooring also cost a lot less than their wood and ceramic tile counterparts and are faster and easier to either do-it-yourself or have installed, so a family doesn’t have to make great sacrifices to restore a room’s appearance," he continues. Today’s Laminate – Great Looks; Greater DurabilityTarkett’s new North American Laminate Collection offers an authentic wood look, featuring traditional and contemporary designs to complement any room of the house, whether a homeowner is seeking to revitalize a kitchen, a living room or a bedroom. From dark wood grains to warm and light tones, a wide assortment of colors, grain designs and textures are available in a variety of plank widths. Many of today’s laminates offer homeowners high durability, resisting scratches and indentations unlike ‘real wood’ floors (look for those marked AC4 and IC3 for the ultimate in wear and indent resistance). In addition to durability, laminate floors now not only come in traditional wood grains, but are available in patterns that replicate the look of tile, natural stone and metallic. So you can now get long-lasting good looks without concern over scratching, dents or the constant need to scrub and clean grout. Not Your Grandmother’s Vinyl Flooring Resilient sheet flooring offers another great alternative when homeowners are looking for a high style ‘remodel’ but without the hefty price tag. Unlike old vinyl flooring, the latest in resilient sheet floors successfully simulate the look of real tile, wood and many other styles and come with benefits ceramic tile and wood flooring can’t beat. Besides being far less expensive, resilient sheet flooring, like Tarkett FiberFloor, is warm and comfortable underfoot, is water- and moisture-resistant, stands up to scratches, scuffs, stains and indentations, and is easy to maintain. This and a number of the new, resilient sheet floors offer the latest design collections that consumers want, whether it be a wood appearance – such as traditional oak, maple or exotic teak – or the look of slate, tile, stone or even a metallic industrial style – and all are easy to install. In fact, some new resilient sheet flooring can be installed with no glue or adhesive at all. The floor just ‘floats’, and that’s certainly good for the environment. <div style="text-align: center"><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,29,0" width="425" height="282"><param name="movie" value="../images/banners/12b.swf" /><param name="quality" value="high" /><param name="menu" value="false" /><param name="wmode" value="" /><embed src="../images/banners/12b.swf" wmode="" quality="high" menu="false" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="282"></embed></object></div> So for better durability, ease of maintenance and a vast array of designs and great looks, today’s new laminate and resilient flooring can help homeowners create a new look for their kitchen, bath, family room or bedroom in less than a weekend. And usually at a price that won’t floor them, either. For more information about residential flooring products, visit <a href="http://www.tarkett.com/">www.tarkett.com</a> . Courtesy of ARAcontent

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