Why Does Everyone Hate Carpet?

Whether selling your home or simply redecorating, your floors deserve careful consideration. Even the best choices in accents and furnishings will fall flat if the floors don’t tie your designs together. While making your selection, you may wonder—why does everyone hate carpet?

Not everyone hates carpet, but it does appear to have fallen out of fashion with millennials and younger. Not only can it be much harder to clean, but in some cases may actually be unhealthy for residents. Additionally, while it doesn’t technically reduce your home’s value, it can make for a harder sell with some buyers.

Of course, not everyone will agree with each of these points. If you find yourself questioning the above, it might be worth looking at each argument just a little more closely.

Why is Carpet Disgusting?

Hardwood and vinyl floors make cleaning a great deal easier than carpet. You might attribute this to the ease of sweeping as opposed to vacuuming, but that’s only a small piece of the puzzle. The greater concern lies with the wide variety of filth a carpet may collect, regardless of how often it’s cleaned. The most common offenders include:

Dust
Dead insects
Pet hair
Urine
Dead skin
Sand and dirt
Cigarette smoke
Moisture

Anyone moving into a carpeted home may therefore find the space largely unsanitary depending on the habits of the previous owner. Cigarette smoke and pet urine are especially concerning, as carpets can absorb and hold odors for years. Furthermore, moisture collected in damp areas with carpeted floors may well develop into mold if left unchecked.

Since carpeted floors act as a vast graveyard for countless dead skin cells, they may also lead to a dust mite infestation. If this happens, one of the only surefire ways to get rid of them is to replace the carpet altogether. Unless homeowners are unusually attached to their carpets, it makes sense that so many would simply opt for hardwood or vinyl before the mites become an issue.

Is Carpet Really Unhealthy?

Almost every one of the pollutants bulleted above can pose health risks for some residents. For instance, the National Center for Healthy Housing notes that simple dust worsens the severity of asthma, while also carrying allergens that may plague more sensitive individuals.

The International Association of Certified Home Inspectors reports similar issues with carpet mold. In fact, even those without allergies may still suffer irritation of the eyes and respiratory system. The toxins found in carpet mold can even lead to skin rash, as well as other symptoms mimicking those of hay fever.

Dust mites are not airborne but can spread to other surfaces such as bedsheets and stuffed animals. Fortunately, they will primarily affect only those with asthma or allergies, and only in some cases will they suffer particularly severe attacks.

Nonetheless, the fact that the symptoms may not threaten your life does not make it worth living with them daily. The American Lung Association notes that mildly discomforting symptoms such as sneezing and watery eyes can persist chronically for as long as dust mites inhabit your home.

Does Carpet Reduce Home Value?

Carpet’s impact on a home’s value can prove somewhat tricky to pin down. Technically speaking, carpet can actually raise a home’s resale value if utilized correctly. Those wishing to increase real estate value without redoing the floors will want to keep a few things in mind, such as:

The carpet should be replaced every 5-15 years depending on wear and quality.
Not every room should be carpeted, particularly those where moisture collects easily.
Colors should match from room to room, sticking to colors that are easy to clean.
Ensure carpet is of decent quality (wool and nylon are among the most durable).

With that in mind, market trends ultimately determine value. Right now, buyers lean toward hardwood as their main preference. If a buyer looks at a home and immediately sees that they’ll need to have the floors redone, they may try to drive down the price. Anyone who cares primarily about resale value should therefore leave carpet by the wayside.

There is one notable exception. Many buyers looking for multi-story homes do prefer carpeting in the bedrooms. Not only does it put less strain on bare feet, but it assists with noise reduction. These two factors alone make it much friendlier than hardwood when undressing and getting ready for a peaceful slumber.

Is Carpet Totally Out of Style?

Despite market preferences, carpeting has not fallen completely out of fashion just yet. In fact, those with a keen eye toward trendy interior design may actually prefer carpet to tile or hardwood in some instances. Naturally, this does not apply to the dingy beige monstrosities you’ll find in most apartments, but rather to very specific types of patterns.

For instance, plaid carpeting can completely change the look of a room while still lending something of an old-school vibe. Striped Carpeting helps when trying to create the illusion of more space. When tastefully done, animal prints make a bold statement in what might otherwise be an unremarkable setting.

In short, the carpet itself is not the problem, but rather how it’s used. The flat colors of low-quality manufacture give off the sense of mass production. Those who want to feel as if they truly own a space will need to opt for something more vibrant, and perhaps something a bit less conventional.

Even subtle patterns such as squares or diamonds can add a sense of texture to a room in addition to the aforementioned benefits of comfort and echo reduction. If a person’s main objection to carpet floors is simply that they’re out of date, then perhaps it’s the designer’s creativity that truly needs updating.

Conclusion

People hate carpets because they’re unsanitary and potentially unhealthy. Many also dislike the design and worry their home will be harder to resell later. However, these issues can be worked around by replacing carpets regularly and putting a little thought into your design choices. Keep this in mind, and there’s no reason you can’t design a carpeted home that everyone will love.

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Why Does Everyone Hate Carpet?