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The Best & Worst Places to Buy Carpet!
Where to Buy New Carpet or Flooring to TRULY get a Fair & Square Deal? Do you want to know How to Choose the Right Carpet and Padding? Do you want to have your new carpet installed properly? Do you want to know how to easily recognize and avoid a Carpet Scam!
Hello, I'm Alan Fletcher, a 30-year Carpet expert and trusted consumer advocate since 1998. I can help you achieve all these things and more. It's a free service for homeowners!
In this Free Report I Reveal the Untold Truth About:
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WHERE NOT to Buy Carpet,
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How to Choose New Carpet Wisely,
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How to Negotiate a Great Deal on New Carpet
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How to Avoid Costly Carpet Buying Mistakes!
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And much more...
Here are your main 8 options for "Where to buy new Carpet & Flooring"
1. A Locally-Owned "Family Run" Carpet Store (Best Bet)
With a few remnants stood up along the back wall, some in-stock rolls of carpet on display, a neat and tidy showroom and a good selection of brand name carpet samples, this is my favorite choice, hands-down! These long-standing neighborhood retailers buy first-quality carpet directly from the carpet manufacturer.
I firmly believe locally owned carpet dealers provide the best customer service, the best prices and are most knowledgeable. Should you ever have a problem, concern or complaint they will do whatever it takes to make sure you are completely satisfied. I have a special list of "hand-picked" locally owned carpet stores that I am proud to recommend. See who I recommend near you
2. Nationally Advertised and BIG-BOX Carpet Retailers
These corporately owned conglomerates blanket the airwaves with repetitive TV commercials, radio ads, billboards and bus stops! They have large retail stores located all over the country and they seem to grow bigger every year. They do sell a lot of carpet and flooring but from my internet research it seems they also tend to get a ton of consumer complaints and negative homeowner reviews.
Personally I think home improvement warehouses fall into this category too because they tend to use private labels to confuse homeowners, they typically farm-out their installations to other companies, they require 100% payment upfront at the time of purchase, and they may even charge you a fee to measure your home. From my research, it seems common that should you have a carpet problem, these big box retailers may just have you contact the installation company directly or force you you contact the carpet manufacturer to try to work out a resolution.
This will be difficult, confusing and time-consuming for you with an outcome that you will likely not be pleased with. In many cases, if you have a complaint or problem with the carpet or the installation job, no one will be willing to step up and accept responsibility and you could be left holding the bag. It amazes me when homeowners tell me they are going to buy from a home improvement warehouse just because they want to use the store's credit card that offers a 10% discount. Don't fall for those free carpet installation specials, if it sounds to good to be true....
Read My Answer to the question: "Should I Buy Carpet Lowe's, Home Depot, Empire Today or Costco?"
3. 1-800 Carpet Wholesalers
Usually located in the state of Georgia, these are carpet and flooring wholesalers who have large warehouses and hundreds of rolls of carpet on hand. They buy their stock from carpet mills at discount prices and then offer great prices the general public. Some of what they buy is defective goods (called "seconds") and some is first grade or "first quality". You must be certain as to what grade of material you are buying and know what that means.
They will gladly send you small carpet samples through the mail so you can see what you are buying, but that does not always help you make a wise choice. There are no refunds on discounted carpets so you really have to be fully aware of all the fine print.
You can save a lot of money if you buy from a reputable carpet wholesaler as long as you know exactly what you are buying and fully understand how the entire carpet buying process works; what is expected of you, especially concerning the delivery of the carpet (unloading off the truck); and what you must do should you need to return a roll of carpet (how much it's going to cost you).
Some carpet outlets stores are very reputable and some are not worth buying from. The burden of being fully knowledgeable about your carpet selection and purchase falls entirely upon you.
4. Online Flooring Retailers
Need Hardwoods, Ceramic Tile or Laminate Flooring? These online companies move a lot of product and can be a smart way to go if you are careful and do your homework. The biggest problem I hear about is the poor quality of the materials. For example: If you buy hardwood flooring that is a low grade, it can be very difficult to install and the amount of unusable or damaged product can be significant.
Buying first-quality hardwoods is much more costly but the outcome is much better than if you buy a "cabin grade" product and have as much as 25% waste. It's hard to know how much material to order when you have no Idea about the amount of unusable product they will be sending you. It can be a real nightmare when you have to re-order more materials because you did not have enough to finish the job due to the amount of unforeseen waste.
Yes, you can save money if you buy from an online flooring wholesaler as long as you know exactly what quality or grade you are buying and know how the entire buying process works from start to finish. Even so, you are taking your chances because you must trust what the salesperson tell you.
Shipping costs can be high too and if you are not happy with the product you may have to pay to ship it back and also pay a hefty re-stocking fee. Some online flooring retailers are reputable and some are not, and knowing the difference is the hard part. Even if you succeed in buying quality flooring at a discount, you still have to arrange for your own installation or do it yourself if you are so inclined.
5. Franchised Carpet Resellers
These carpet dealers are often locally owned but are hooked up with a large carpet distributor or co-op to increase their buying power and decrease their shipping costs. They use private labels to prevent you from comparison shopping at other carpet local stores, it is much more difficult to get carpet specifications from these dealers, and it takes much more time to comparison shop their products.
Even so, you can still negotiate a fair deal if you know what you are doing and don't rely on their salespeople to make choices for you. You may end up paying a little more with franchised flooring dealers but they usually have qualified installers and offer a wide range of quality flooring products.
6. Buying Carpet from a Carpet Layer
Some carpet layers have longstanding relationships with local carpet dealers, or may have a way to order new carpet and padding at near wholesale prices from local suppliers. Carpet layers often end up with sizable leftovers from bigger carpet jobs because carpet so many salespeople over-measure their jobs.
When there is a lot of carpet leftover the installer may take it home and try to sell it on Craigslist or in the local newspaper. If you find an installer who has some leftover carpet or other flooring materials available at a very special price, you need to understand that they have a limited supply of those materials and have no way of getting any more of the exact same color or style.
There is no manufacturer's warranty on these materials whatsoever and no recourse if you end up unhappy with the performance. Still, you can find some real bargains this way. I suggest you check references, verify their contractors license and business liability insurance to make sure they are all current and up-to-date. This might be an inexpensive way to go if you are just doing one or two rooms or if you need to replace carpet or flooring for a rental property.
7. Shop-at-Home Carpet Retailers
Many people love the convenience of not having to travel from store to store and prefer having samples brought to their home. It makes matching colors easier in your own home. Many locally owned carpet dealers are now offering shop-at-home services and this can a good way to go for those who don't want to drive all around town. There are a few nationally advertised shop-at-home flooring dealers that I do not recommend because they tend to sell inferior products, have unreasonably high prices and have high-pressure salespeople.
I believe that in-home carpet shopping is a wonderful service for folks who have a hard time getting around and don't mind paying a bit extra for the convenience. There are reputable carpet dealers that offer quality products, knowledgeable salespeople and reasonable prices but they are hard to find today because the shop-at-home concept is just getting started. For those who are looking for the absolute best carpet deal, a shop-at-home service will not likely be the lowest cost option you are seeking.
8. A Local Carpet Warehouse or Outlet Store
These local guys are doing their best to be consumer friendly and offer low prices and feature rolls of "in-stock" carpet. They tend to cater to homeowners on a tight budget, landlords and property managers and DIY homeowners. They offer plenty of inexpensive, lower-quality or second-grade goods. They may buy carpet in sufficient quantity to get some good deals on better grades of carpet in limited quantities styles and colors. Check their guarantee carefully and get everything in writing before you sign on the dotted line. Once you buy it, you own it. They may offer in-house installation or they might just give you a list of local installers for you to call and hire on your own.
If you want to do-it-yourself, create a detailed diagram of your home with all the room measurements and bring your truck, rope and a tarp! If you have to arrange for your own installation you must negotiate with the installer and pay them directly. In the end, if you pay just $8.99 per yard for the carpet, don't expect it to last for 10 years. Even though you can get a great deal on discounted carpets, always remember that there was some reason why it was not able to be sold as first-quality goods.
Learn more about buying new carpet wisely...
