oak is the most used and common in new england homes. White oak is harder and less grain while red is softer and takes a stain better. Only problem with red is if it get wet for a while it turns black while white does not. As for pine it looks nice but its too soft shows everything like if your putting a frige back. Pne is dented. It boils down to personal choice some people like that old new england type floor that is called rustic like when the pilgrims were here. If you want something durable and easily maintained go with red or white oak when building houses.