for those of you who do rehabs, quick flips etc.
…where do you go to purhcase new carpeting? anywhere in particular in which you pay significantly less than your department stores such as “King Carpet” etc.?
Also, how much could I expect to spend (per foot?).
I’m tryign estimate the cost of recarpeting an entire home.
thanks,
Ryan
The last that we had done was from Lowes…buy it on sale (and I get 10% off that)…
I paid just under $2 a square foot installed with pad as I remember correctly…like about $900 for 500 sq ft.
Keith
Anything under 2 bucks is fine…It’s not for you it’s for the buyer… Only get 1 layer of padding!!! 
Is it absolutely necessary to replace the carpet? If it’s reasonably new (installed in the 90s) and there aren’t stains everywhere, you may get away with leaving it as is. I can’t suggest a good place to buy carpet, but I can suggest that you consider felt-back carpeting. It will look nice in the house and is incredibly cheap since it doesn’t require any padding or tack strips - just some stapling. It doesn’t make for a long-lasting carpet, but it will get the job done for flipping.
i see a couple of problems with these responses…
first, a rehabber has to know how to buy at discount/or wholesale. NEVER buy carpet at a retail shop. $2 per sqft eats your profits. You negotiate for all of your repairs, just like you negotiated for the house. just always remember, “i never pay retail”
my latest carpet job…150 sq yards of new Berber @ $5.25 a yard. install at $2.25 a yard. you do the math…your $2 a sq ft = $18.00 a sq yd.
And the other comments about cutting corners and putting down “cheap” carpet without pad or with 2 layers of pad? Rehabbing gets a bad name from clowns like this. Don’t do it…
Develop a list of wholesale suppliers and vendors, forget the lowes & home depot stores.
reddoor,
I’m going to have to disagree with you on the Lowe’s/HomeDepot (well, Lowe’s anyway. Haven’t tried HomeDepot).
Here’s why: Lowe’s offers several options of carpet, both in 12’ and 15’ versions, that range from about $4.25 to $7.80 a YARD, not foot. These are builder grade carpets, not “cheap” grade, but not high end either (They offer a line for about $3.85 or so, but it is cheap).
Their padding (again, good, but not the ‘best’) is $2.25/yard.
So, $4.25 + $2.25 + $2.25 = $8.75/yard installed (plus taxes, of course). And that’s before any discounts.
Here’s why I don’t like “discount” carpet outlets. In the last two years, I’ve went through three of them simply because they usually don’t stay in business very long. To me, it’s simply a time-value thing for me. I’ve found that I can buy carpet just about as cheap as the “discount” without the hassle, and if I can’t get my installer to work it in quickly enough, Lowe’s can supply that, too.
Raj
I can mail you a coupon for 20% off at lowes. I’ve got a marketing partnership. You give me your address through PM and I will have the coupon to you in about a week.
Here’s a lesson I learned the expensive way.
I had a carpet installed by Lowes. They did a great job. Because of the odd layout of the unit there were a lot of seams and a lot of waste. I paid by the square foot for carpet, pad and installation on 30 sq yards or carpet that were never used on the job. The excess material nearly filled my darn pickup truck.
So I was yakking with a local flooring guy and he was talking some stuff about seams and waste and long hallways and rooms over 15’. He was able to carpet an identical unit for about 600.00 less even though his carpet was more expensive.
Go figure. Pay the measuring fees at Lowes or Home depot. See how many SF of carpet you have to buy over and above the sq footage of the area to be carpeted. Discuss the results with a local flooring guy. You may be surprised.
Cheaper by the foot is not always cheaper by the job.
Jeff
I don’t have Lowe’s install my carpets (though it’s a good way to find installer’s, as Lowe’s merely contracts the jobs out).
I have my own installer, and to save on carpet, you need to know what’s best for the house, either 12’ or 15’ length.
Raj
If you are a business, you can get a business membership to ProSource
Flooring(if they are located in your town)
I recently bought carpet there that Home Depot retails for $17/yd. I paid
$7.99/yd+tax and freight. It was Shaw Industry Carpet. It is a Builder Grade carpet, 25 oz., which we will install over 1/2", 6# pad which gives it a much nicer feel. Cushy.
Something to think about. You can find them under carpet in Yellow Pages. They are wholesale to trade only.
They also have tile, wood, vinyl
Good luck
Yargo in Colorado