Sq. Footage & basements (Denver: lofts, new house, crawl space)

[mares]

I have a stupid question to ask...are basements included in the total square footage of a home? Also, do "most" homes in Co have a basement. Is it "typical" or only if stated?

[Noahma]

Originally Posted by mares

I have a stupid question to ask...are basements included in the total square footage of a home? Also, do "most" homes in Co have a basement. Is it "typical" or only if stated?

it is not included in the final squarefootage of a home. Its a toss up if one has a basement or not, I would say that most older homes will most likely have one. Newer homes might or might not have one.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by Noahma

it is not included in the final squarefootage of a home. Its a toss up if one has a basement or not, I would say that most older homes will most likely have one. Newer homes might or might not have one.

I am 99% sure the basement area was included in the ad for our home.

[Noahma]

Originally Posted by Charles

I am 99% sure the basement area was included in the ad for our home.

if it was, it should not be in the total squarefootage. It may be a seperate number, but not in the total. We seperate our squarefootage numbers out by main level, upper leve, and basement finsished and unfinished, the main and upper levels are combined to give you the livable squarefootage, and the basement untill finished is not considered living area. any room without an egress window is also not considered living space even if finished off as a bedroom (due to egress requirements by code)

[MorningGlory]

Originally Posted by mares

I have a stupid question to ask...are basements included in the total square footage of a home? Also, do "most" homes in Co have a basement. Is it "typical" or only if stated?

Now, if its finished, it can be included in "total square footage"

It didnt used to be like this. But now if you have a 1500sf ranch with a fully finished 1500 sf basement, the mls will list it as 3000 sf., then go on to break down what floors have what sf.

Mares, many homes in the Denver area have basements, but not all. Older ranches (built in the 50s) may just have crawl space. Some new houses only have crawl spaces because the basement was an option that the first owner opted out of.

[b.adams]

Our realtor told us they normally only list the above ground square footage, but it seems like more often than not, they list the total finished square footage ... which can include the basement space if its finished. We listed out last house at the higher number because the entire 1550 square foot basement was finished and it was every bit as nice at the rest of the house.

[2bindenver]

The reporting of square footage in MLS depends on the rules of the MLS.

There are three major MLS's along the front range - IRES, Metrolist, Pikes Peak.

I would say 70% of the single family residences have basements. Some stly of houses bi-levels and spilt levels do not have basements (some 3 & 4 levels do)

Noahma is correct that in the Denver MLS we report (although not mandatory) each level and the basement and the total finished. There are seven different fields.

1. Above Grade (no basements)
2. Total
3. Finished
4. Main
5. Upper
6. Lower
7. Basement

[livecontent]

Basements are good to have in this area because of the low water table in most areas; the basements are dry and have low humidity. I grew up in the east and all the most basements had sump pumps--clothes, shoes stored in th basement took on a smell and got moldly. Here, a basement is a nice place to go when it gets hot, keeps your house cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. I believe a ranch with a full basement, much better than crawl spaces. With no upper levels, you do not have to worry about heating and cooling. Split homes have problems with rooms over unheated garages as they get colder in winter and hotter in summer.

I believe there should be a requirement to market homes not only with livable square feet but in total livable cubic feet. I say this because the necessity of heating and cooling a house is based on livable cubic feet, not square feet. Today, with high ceilings, cathedrals ceilings, lofts etc. the cubic feet is more indicative of the heating/cooling cost vs. square footage. Energy efficiency of a home cannot be determined by square feet alone. With rising energy costs, better information should be given to the buyer.

Livecontent

[Noahma]

Originally Posted by livecontent

Basements are good to have in this area because of the low water table in most areas; the basements are dry and have low humidity. I grew up in the east and all the most basements had sump pumps--clothes, shoes stored in th basement took on a smell and got moldly. Here, a basement is a nice place to go when it gets hot, keeps your house cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. I believe a ranch with a full basement, much better than crawl spaces. With no upper levels, you do not have to worry about heating and cooling. Split homes have problems with rooms over unheated garages as they get colder in winter and hotter in summer.

I believe there should be a requirement to market homes not only with livable square feet but in total livable cubic feet. I say this because the necessity of heating and cooling a house is based on livable cubic feet, not square feet. Today, with high ceilings, cathedrals ceilings, lofts etc. the cubic feet is more indicative of the heating/cooling cost vs. square footage. Energy efficiency of a home cannot be determined by square feet alone. With rising energy costs, better information should be given to the buyer.

Livecontent

lol, I hate having to calculate square footage right now as it is let alone cubic footage lol

back in the 20's though, the homes were advertised with cubic square footage.

most newer construction in colorado will have a sump pump due to the bentinite clay in the soil holding water higher in the lot.