Is a finished basement considered in the total sqft of a home? (Fairfax: real estate, homeowners insurance)

[VRE332]

What's the trick behind trying to sell a home with a finished basement, and adding the basement size to the total SQFT ? I don't understand

[Caladium]

As far as I know it's not included in the square footage. That's OK by me, if it was included it might raise my property taxes even higher. If you're trying to feature the basement as a selling feature, talk it up in the comments section of your listings.

[Lehuster]

How is it a "trick"? The finished basement is usable living space - that's the whole point of finishing it.

[ChristineVA]

In this area, no. When looking at a listing you will see the square footage of the non-basement areas. For instance, my house is 2500 square feet on the top and mid levels. My basement adds about 1200 more square feet. My house would not be listed as having 3700 square feet. It would be listed as a 2500 square foot home with a full finished basement.

[FCNova]

Originally Posted by ChristineVA

In this area, no. When looking at a listing you will see the square footage of the non-basement areas. For instance, my house is 2500 square feet on the top and mid levels. My basement adds about 1200 more square feet. My house would not be listed as having 3700 square feet. It would be listed as a 2500 square foot home with a full finished basement.

I think you're right, you're only supposed to list above grade sq. footage in the listing. But some houses are listed with total finished sq. footage(including basement). The townhouse I bought was listed that way. I've seen other listings in the same complex not include the finished basement.

[jillybean720]

Originally Posted by Lehuster

How is it a "trick"? The finished basement is usable living space - that's the whole point of finishing it.

I don't understand it, either, but I recently bought a house, and while shopping, what others have described is exactly what I came across during my search - above-level square footage is listed as the square footage of the home, and a finished basement is simply "extra" and not included. I can't explain it, just saying that's how it is!

Oh, and homeowners insurance works the same way. I had to update mine, and we were going over all the info, and when it came to square footage, I was told NOT to include the finished basement.

[Fundman]

There doesn't seem to be much consistency on this. Some real estate agents say you should include the basement if it is finished. Some say to include the space only if it is a walkout basement. Some say never include it. I think this split is a leftover of earlier times when basements were usually unfinished and had low ceilings and were just utility/storage areas. Now basements are considered main living areas in most houses.

[newnewsmama]

For single family detached homes, the square footage should not include basement, even if the basement is finished. However, today on many of the real estate websites (such as redfin), some home owners/real estate agents will include basement square footage. Others will not. So it is very confusing. The dollar per square footage calculated by these websites are NOT reliable. Very often, a 5000 sqft house is actually smaller than a 4000 sqft on these websites because the 5000 sqft includes the basement while the 4000 sqft does not. So make sure you are comparing apples with apples. One tip is to compare "tax square footage" or "above grade square footage". Square footage used in appraisal or tax record are above grade square footage and should never include basement.

The above is for single family detached homes. For townhomes, it is even more confusing. Technically, basement should not be counted either. However, some townhouses have all three levels above ground. For these townhouses, counties (at least Loudoun County) have inconsistent assessment data. Sometimes the first floor (which is completely above ground) is counted. Other times it is not. So if you are buying a townhouse, do NOT believe the numbers only. Visit the properties and see them in person.

[JD984]

Agree with Fundman. We sold a house with a finished basement in Fairfax County a few years ago. The basement SF was not reflected in the county tax records, as it was below grade, but our realtor included it in the listing. It wasn't something we asked her to do, but it didn't seem unreasonable (it was a walk out from the back yard with an extra bedroom that complied with code).

[yolli71]

Originally Posted by ChristineVA

In this area, no. When looking at a listing you will see the square footage of the non-basement areas. For instance, my house is 2500 square feet on the top and mid levels. My basement adds about 1200 more square feet. My house would not be listed as having 3700 square feet. It would be listed as a 2500 square foot home with a full finished basement.

I believe this is accurate but here's what I don't understand...

My home is a 3 level home. The bottom level (or "basement"), is where the garage is located and is where I walk into the house. This bottom level is ground level...no part of it is underground in any way. I do not have a sump pump. I have normal sized windows and 9' ceilings on this level. I have a bedroom, bathroom, and rec room. It is completely finished like the other 2 levels of my home. So why is this considered a "basement" and the square footage not included (which was the case with both appraisals when I bought and later refinanced the home)?