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It seems there must be an anti-basement movement that has affected NC for what seems like a century. There are very few houses down here with basements. When I was shopping for a house, I enquired to several builders about a basement and the usual answer was "We only build on a slab or a crawlspace". Why!
It can't be the clay soil because there are many areas of the country that have clay soil and also have basements. I would have happily paid extra to have my house built with one.
I know some of you will pipe in, saying, "My house has a basement", but many of those are with the garage(s) in what would be the basement or something that is really a ground floor with doors that open into the back yard. Some of the houses that actually have what I consider to be a real basement (think casement windows at or below ground level with a metal or concrete surround ) seem to have been built early in the century. It also can't be the water table either, because the house I used to live in had a full basement and was 700 feet away from a river. You could strike water at 12 feet. It never flooded either! Is it just that building on a slab is so cheap and easy, that builders can't be bothered.
I just find it hard to believe that so many builders can't figure out how to dig a hole and assemble, with either cinder blocks or a poured concrete foundation, a house that would have a lot more room for storing all the junk of modern life! Think of the garage space you could free up! People with a two-car or three-car garage seem to have to dedicate one of the spaces for junk.
I'd like to hear from people who just had a house built with no basement. What excuse did they give you for not having a basement as an option if you inquired about one?
Simple - the cost. It is more expensive to excavate than it is to pour a slab and build. Plus, you have get rid of the fill somewhere - more cost. Builders are out to make money remember!
I do think that cost is a factor. I have heard that water table is higher here than in other parts of the country. That being said, I grew up in the Triad and many homes there have basements. My parents home has a garage but the rest (family room, guest bedroom/bath) is slightly to mostly below ground level. Their home is 25+ years old. You will probably find more older homes with basements. I have seen new builder signs that advertise "basement homes!" so they are out there but they just aren't the norm.
Simple - the cost. It is more expensive to excavate than it is to pour a slab and build. Plus, you have get rid of the fill somewhere - more cost. Builders are out to make money remember!
I do think that cost is a factor. I have heard that water table is higher here than in other parts of the country. That being said, I grew up in the Triad and many homes there have basements. My parents home has a garage but the rest (family room, guest bedroom/bath) is slightly to mostly below ground level. Their home is 25+ years old. You will probably find more older homes with basements. I have seen new builder signs that advertise "basement homes!" so they are out there but they just aren't the norm.
Same here I agree there is more homes in the triad with basements. I grew up there as well and everyone I knew had a basement or what they call today a walk out.
It's cost. I personally, would never buy a home without a basement. I once bought a home with a crawl space and then realized how much I missed having a basement. For storage and extra living space, they can't be beat.
We, too have been looking for basement homes and find they are not that plentiful. We are primarily looking at older homes but when we checked out some new construction we found one builder who would build EITHER a basement OR an attic bonus room but not both, even though the buyer paid extra for each so $ was probably not a factor here - the rep had no idea why we couldn't get both - guess there is not much calling for both, but dh and I are such packrats that we could easily fill both!
We, too have been looking for basement homes and find they are not that plentiful. We are primarily looking at older homes but when we checked out some new construction we found one builder who would build EITHER a basement OR an attic bonus room but not both, even though the buyer paid extra for each so $ was probably not a factor here - the rep had no idea why we couldn't get both - guess there is not much calling for both, but dh and I are such packrats that we could easily fill both!
Our sales rep told us that as well. SHe suggested it would be considered "commercial" instead of residential. WE opted for the finished 3rd floor attic. We still have 3 floors and it was way cheaper than a basement.
Our sales rep told us that as well. SHe suggested it would be considered "commercial" instead of residential. WE opted for the finished 3rd floor attic. We still have 3 floors and it was way cheaper than a basement.
Say what? Commercial?
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