Hi all,

I am new to wood floors and this site. I found it very helpful and informative. I thank you all for steering me clear of LL. I think I was about to make a $10,000 mistake. I really appreciate your candid and honest opinions.

However, now I am starting my search over again. We will be reselling our home in a couple years and I am remodeling the whole house. An avid DIY, I'm looking for a medium toned wood (preferably exotic with a warmer tint - red rather than yellow undertones), 3/4" pre-finished solid - since that seems to be the agreed upon quality for thickness to nail-down over subflooring. I'm looking for a larger strip such as 3 1/4" in a select grade. I don't like a whole lot of color variation or graining. Hopefully a wood that is hard, stable and not extremely photosensitive. (Basically the dream wood floor.) I would like to stay under or around $5/sq.ft. if possible.

So, as I search for a wood with these specifications. I would love to hear your opinions on the brands. Do you think you might be able to list them in order of preference/quality? Indicating also the brands you do not like to deal with (at the bottom of the list)? Also, any suggestions to wood types that fit my criteria would be very welcome. Every time I look at a sample or at a picture, the shades seem to vary greatly and I am scared of making a mistake from a resale point of view.

Thank you all so much for your help. I look forward to hearing your responses.

Shop around the site here. The prices here are about as good as you can get for QUALITY flooring. You want an exotic hardwood, prefinished, wider plank, 3/4" solid select for under $5.00 a ft? I think you'll have to get the chinese stuff for that price OR go with a 3/8" or engineered.