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08-09-2008, 01:09 PM
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Junior Member
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Join Date: Aug 2008
4 posts, read 3,095 times
Reputation: 10
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No Basements? Any alternatives?
A quick question for all the Realtors out there -
My husband wants a basement (or similar space) in our next home - a "man cave" where he can set up his office and a media room.
We haven't seen any houses with basements in and around Austin and only a select few expensive houses seem to have "basement alternatives", like carriage houses or garage apartments/in-law suites.
What are the options for a separate space with a budget of 200-250K?
We'd like to live W or NW of town and don't mind heading a bit further out to find a place that fits. Are there any neighborhoods that would be more likely to have in-law suites etc.?
Thank you for the help!
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08-09-2008, 07:04 PM
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Senior Member
Status:
"holiday cards, done!"
(set 7 hours ago)
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Join Date: May 2008
Location: central Austin
1,309 posts, read 822,301 times
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Lots of homes have in-laws plans and most have two living areas. You won't find basements -- they would have to be blasted!
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08-09-2008, 07:28 PM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: Jul 2007
991 posts, read 934,738 times
Reputation: 95
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You could find lots of large homes in the northwest suburbs in your price range. Here's one that has a downstairs guest room...don't know if that's "man-cave" enough or not 
http://www.austinhomesearch.com/Sear...9739&or=1&cp=1 |
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08-09-2008, 08:01 PM
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Real Estate Agent
Status:
"Still stuffed from Thanksgiving!"
(set 21 days ago)
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Central Texas
7,540 posts, read 4,370,632 times
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I've seen several houses of varying ages in this area that have something that would be excellent for a "man cave" (in fact, first heard the term when I was showing a couple a LOT of houses in the area and they found possibilities in many of them).
Some have actual media rooms that could serve that purpose. Others have a "teenager's retreat" upstairs, sometimes, sometimes made out of a garage, that would work. A listing I have now has a separate guesthouse that works perfectly for that now - just an efficiency with a kitchenette and bath, but it works.
These are in price ranges from $150,000 - $375,000.
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08-09-2008, 08:10 PM
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Thong Guy in SW Austin
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Join Date: Feb 2007
1,490 posts, read 1,533,662 times
Reputation: 362
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Saw the stupidest thing ever on a home plan the other day...a tiny single room that basically just filled out some empty space of a 2nd floor and it was named "Texas Basement".
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08-09-2008, 08:30 PM
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Knee-deep in the hoopla
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Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Austin
1,234 posts, read 930,912 times
Reputation: 245
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That's something I miss from Boston (and my husband from Chicago): NO BASEMENTS! Or creepy attics.
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08-10-2008, 09:10 AM
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Junior Member
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Join Date: Aug 2008
4 posts, read 3,095 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady
I've seen several houses of varying ages in this area that have something that would be excellent for a "man cave" (in fact, first heard the term when I was showing a couple a LOT of houses in the area and they found possibilities in many of them).
Some have actual media rooms that could serve that purpose. Others have a "teenager's retreat" upstairs, sometimes, sometimes made out of a garage, that would work. A listing I have now has a separate guesthouse that works perfectly for that now - just an efficiency with a kitchenette and bath, but it works.
These are in price ranges from $150,000 - $375,000.
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Thank you TexasHorseLady! It's really good to know that there are alternatives. My husband will be relieved! |
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08-10-2008, 11:26 AM
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Senior Member
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Join Date: May 2008
Location: Dallas, Texas
481 posts, read 435,725 times
Reputation: 96
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ATLDoc, there are no basements because the ground is solid rock. To build one would be cost prohibative - you have to dynamite. In fact, most areas have to dynamite to put in a pool. So, that's why most houses sit on a concrete slab rather than pier and beam.
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08-10-2008, 11:32 AM
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Real Estate Agent
Status:
"Still stuffed from Thanksgiving!"
(set 21 days ago)
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Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Central Texas
7,540 posts, read 4,370,632 times
Reputation: 2574
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You can have pier and beam east of IH35 pretty easily. And in SOME parts of the Hill Country. (After all, people lived there before there were slab foundations. ) But, yes, rock is a problem as far as having a basement.
However, most folks in Texas don't have basements - it's not just here. We may have storm shelters (we have one ourselves, after the F5 came through right down the road), but basements just aren't something we need. With as much room as we have to spread out, and up, that's what we've tended to do, instead. There's no real interest in having them, for the most part, except on the part of folks moving here from elsewhere who think that's the only way to accommodate the need for that extra space - because it IS, where they come from.
Or folks in tornado alley, too, of course.  |
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