Feeny is absolutely correct, hardwood floors will always be in-style, even though the species and stain color popularity will vary over time. Whatever everyone else's opinions may be about what is currently "trending", always go with the floor you fall in love with and you will be happy with your decision.

Builders Custom Flooring and feeny are correct. The ceramic tile "wood look" is "in" because of many factors. In many applications it is the only option if you want the look of wood (bathrooms, Florida, Texas, etc). Hardwood is timeless, functional and easily changed to follow trends. The cost of hardwood (initial investment) can be scary for many but the cost per square foot should be evaluated over 25-80 years. By that estimate, hardwood is some of the cheapest flooring you can purchase when viewed over the life time of the floor.

Ceramic tile "wood look" is going to run into some issues which come with every ceramic/porcelain/stone/cement tile = chipping and damage. These floors aren't old enough (10+ years is when things really start to look worn) for us to look back and say, "That was a great choice!" With anything that is a specialty/trendy item....buy 30% more than you think you need so that repairs are easy to do when the time comes. That way you can get the 30 years out of a tiled floor (wood look or not). Broken or damaged tiles always happen. The annoying thing is you can't find a replacement in 10 years. That is when you have to shell out another $5/sf on materials + labour + removal of the old tiles...once again. In Canada labour can be the same cost as materials ... which means your up to $10/sf

Hardwood shouldn't need too much in the way of costly maintenance until it hits 25 years old. Even if you opt for the buff & coat (mid-life pick-me-up around 15 years of age) the cost is $2-$3/sf (half of a full sand and refinish). By the time a hardwood floor requires a full sand and refinish (averaging $5/sf for this) the "tile" floors will have been bought, installed and removed as many as 3 times. That $10/sf just turned into $30/sf...'cause the floor has been laid 3 times in 25 years.

Sand and refinish of a hardwood floor is always cheaper than purchasing and installing a new floor...assuming you have chosen something that has value to it. Materials bought at LL don't count.

The brick look tile has been used for many, many years commercially. So I don't think you have to worry about trend. Get what you love and can afford.

I am considering it. I would love to have hardwood in my kitchen, but just don't trust my family to clean up every drip and keep it dry enough.

Hardwood. Always.