I have lino at my house atm, and as a previous poster said you really do need straight floors for it. Ours shows up all the bumps from the uneven floorboards. It is tough wearing though, it has probably been there for about 30 years and doesn't have that many scuffs. You could lessen the effect of the uneven floor by getting a lino with a matt finish instead of gloss, and careful picking of patterns.

When we get around to renovating this place, we will probably put in a floating floor because the underlay is more forgiving with the unevenness. We have installed this before and it was reasonably hard wearing, although it did scratch a bit and we had to put felt pads under the chairs etc so they didn't scrap it.

Carpet isn't that bad an option. It will hide imperfections with the flooring nicely. Modern carpets take a lot of use before they wear, even in high use areas. As for tenants wreaking it, that is what bond and reference checks are for. But if it is the main walkway by the door then mud being trampled in is a pain, it is easier to have something you can mop.