So I give the future new carpet a 10 year max life. That means 2 more carpet replacements to save for before I retire.

Eventually, when it's too late, I'll find out how durable this new carpet actually turns out to be. Home ownership is a never-ending adventure that way. 😁

10/END

Nylon with a low, even-looped pile would last longer. But I'm so traumatized by how badly my Stainmonster nylon carpet stained that I won't consider it.

Nylon doesn't even wear that much longer. My old polyester carpet lasted 8 years. The current nylon carpet was flattened & matted at 10 years. 9/

I've found a polyester carpet from a well-regarded manufacturer that features a mix of short, even loops & short cut pile. Face weight is 38.1 oz. It is also solution-dyed & treated to resist pet stains.

Will it wear? The pile design & face weight SHOULD meet or beat long cut-pile nylon. 8/

"Face weight" captures the durability gain of more yarns per inch woven into a carpet. But it includes the weight of low-durability long pile as well, so it's NOT a pure durability metric. Bottom end is 20 oz.

Of 2 carpets with the SAME pile design, the heavier face weight wears longer. 7/

That leaves the wear problem. Polyester doesn't wear well, but pile design can help.

Cut pile, which is the most common type installed today, thins as the cut ends fray. It also flattens if yarns are long or yarn-count-per-inch is low. Looped pile wears longer. Short, even loops wear best. 6/

Solution-dyed yarns can also help. Solution-dyed yarns are dyed BEFORE being woven into the carpet. This helps the dye "take" better, making solution-dyed carpet more stain and fade resistant than carpet dyed later in manufacturing.

Solution-dyed, pet-treated polyester for the win! 5/

There's a pet-treated nylon that's supposed to resist acidic pet stains 2x as well as regular nylon. But that's not good enough.

There's a pet-treated POLYESTER that's 2x as resistant to pet stains as regular polyester. That's ~4x better than untreated nylon, and it MIGHT be good enough. 4/

The problem was pet stains.

Stains weren't a problem with the polyester carpet in my old condo. Pet stain remover worked.

But I bought longer-wearing nylon for this house, & nylon has a chemistry problem. Acid stains etch it & can't be removed. Pet stains are acidic. 3/

Tile or hardwood are forever. Carpet is not. I chose carpet anyway because it is:

• Warmer
• Softer to sit on
• Sound-dampening
• Non-slip

Price wasn't a factor in this case, but carpet is cheaper too.

I bought quality carpet & figured it would last 15 years. It did not. 2/

6. FOOD INFLATION is real. See that purple band widen in 2022 to 2024?

7. FOOD COSTS MORE THAN UTILITIES + COMMUNICATION in California. A favorable climate lowers utility costs. High population density lowers communication costs to vendors, who may pass on savings. Retire to such a place.

5/END

5. IF YOU RENT, you pay the landlord's mortgage + irreducible core costs + profit. At best, these are split across multiple renters & may cost less than home ownership for each renter. But for rent to be cheaper than owning, keep rent < 1/3 of your total expenses & <33% of income.

4/

3. PAYROLL TAXES PLUS MORTGAGE ≈ half your expenses while working. So your EXPENSES DROP BY HALF if you pay off your mortgage before you retire. This makes living on Social Security possible.

4. PREPAY YOUR MORTGAGE if needed to pay off your mortgage by retirement! It's that big a deal.

3/

2. #HOMEOWNERSHIP COSTS are ~1/3 to 1/2 of total expenses in California. Even after mortgage payoff, an irreducible core expense remains for property tax, insurance, HOA, & maintenance. This irreducible core is your 3rd largest expense while working & likely your largest expense in retirement.

2/