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All the houses I ever lived in had a basement. Not only it's great for storage, but if you have to work on the house, having basement access makes things so much easier. I can't help to wonder what kind of cost and mess is involved if you have trouble with plumbing under a house with a slap. I've done electrical work in houses that only had crawl spaces, and let me tell you it isn't a pleasant working environment. As for flooding, both the houses I've owned with basements were on high ground. If my basement gets water due to flooding, most of the county will be under water too.
I guess if you never had a basement, you do not know what your missing, but for me no basement, no sale.
Garages are really nice too. My first house didn't have a garage, but my second one does. There's nothing nicer than coming home from shopping when it's raining outside and pulling into a nice dry garage to unload the car. Not to mention never having to scrap the car windows or brush off the snow before you leave for work in the morning.
I don't think I would consider a house without a basement. Every house I've lived in has had one and I find basements to be really useful. In my current house we have a guest room in the basement and my husband and I use it a lot in the summers because it is so much easier to keep the basement cool. The basement is also where we have exercise equipment and a rec room. In our next house we hope to have space for a workshop in the basement as well.
If it's an unfinished or uninsulated basement, it's not going to do anything except maybe keep your house colder in the winter.
Anyway, aren't you moving to someplace around Raleigh? The climate extremes are not very wide there.
I've read your posts here and on the Raleigh thread. If you read them objectively, as a stranger can, you'll probably see the same thing I do. You want the basement. Period. And that's fine - it's your choice and your home. No need to justify that with energy costs or anything else.
You've got me
Actually I'm in PA, I just want to hear more opinion about basement, that's why I replied to that topic in Raleigh.
All the houses I ever lived in had a basement. Not only it's great for storage, but if you have to work on the house, having basement access makes things so much easier. I can't help to wonder what kind of cost and mess is involved if you have trouble with plumbing under a house with a slap. I've done electrical work in houses that only had crawl spaces, and let me tell you it isn't a pleasant working environment. As for flooding, both the houses I've owned with basements were on high ground. If my basement gets water due to flooding, most of the county will be under water too.
I guess if you never had a basement, you do not know what your missing, but for me no basement, no sale.
Garages are really nice too. My first house didn't have a garage, but my second one does. There's nothing nicer than coming home from shopping when it's raining outside and pulling into a nice dry garage to unload the car. Not to mention never having to scrap the car windows or brush off the snow before you leave for work in the morning.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nikitakolata
I don't think I would consider a house without a basement. Every house I've lived in has had one and I find basements to be really useful. In my current house we have a guest room in the basement and my husband and I use it a lot in the summers because it is so much easier to keep the basement cool. The basement is also where we have exercise equipment and a rec room. In our next house we hope to have space for a workshop in the basement as well.
For me no basement = no sale.
That's what we should do for our next house, thanks
You answered the question already in your first post. You want a basement.
I don't blame you...that extra storage is awesome. I also would want a basement. Not sure why you even looked at the home that didn't have a basement. That was your downful. Now you like it and are thinking about removing a very important requirement(the basement).
When househunting years ago, a basement was a requirement and we would not look at any homes that didn't have a basement. I called a FSBO to ask whether it had a basement. The owner said it did not and I politely told her this home won't work for us due to not having a basement. She went on and on about it having an attic for storage. However, one of my requirements for the basement was a place to keep the dog when were were not home. I told her this and mentioned that the dog cannot be kept in the attic.
Actually, a lot of stuff cannot be kept in the attic because it can get too hot and melt candles and such. Plus you actually use the basement for excercise equipment and all kinds of other things. A basement is more sq footage to use and the bonus is that it is taxed at a very low rate.
I have 3 dogs, so it's great to have basement, you've got me to
Don't be afraid to think outside you comfort zone. There are just some places where basements aren't possible. I'm sure not everyone who lives in those areas walks around all day cursing that they don't have one. They must figure out a method for dealing with storage/laundry/exercise equipment/dogs.
I do understand you wanting a basement, my husband grew up with them and likes them. An alternative to a basement is a garage. You can store the stuff you mentioned in there just like you do in the basement. People hang bikes in there, put shelves for pantry items, have laundry hookup, and use part of it for workshop, just whatever. On the house you're looking at, consider the cost of having an attached garage built, as long as the setback will allow for it, otherwise detached out back with maybe a covered walkway. OR if there is an extra room next to the kitchen that you could turn into a big pantry, that is a storage/workout area, putting in a door to attach the two might work. And then there's building out from the kitchen door or wherever the laundry is, any likely place for a bump-out affair, to make a combo mudroom, storage area, space for treadmill, and maybe even a greenhouse lean-to section stuck on the end, should be cheaper than a garage.
This is very dependent on the climate in the area where you live. Here in Phoenix, putting pantry items in the garage is impossible in the summer, unless you want to have cans blowing up and food all over the garage. It gets THAT hot. Most people find that putting an extra fridge in the garage is also not a good idea - the cost to run the thing is very high, and they don't last very long.
Even non-food items don't do well in the garage in the summer. Plastic cracks, wood warps, etc.
Yet, we have very few homes here with basements, but plenty of 3 and 4 car garages.
This is very dependent on the climate in the area where you live. Here in Phoenix, putting pantry items in the garage is impossible in the summer, unless you want to have cans blowing up and food all over the garage. It gets THAT hot. Most people find that putting an extra fridge in the garage is also not a good idea - the cost to run the thing is very high, and they don't last very long.
Even non-food items don't do well in the garage in the summer. Plastic cracks, wood warps, etc.
Yet, we have very few homes here with basements, but plenty of 3 and 4 car garages.
Why is it that basements are not as common in the south? I know they are rare in Texas too. Is it because tornadoes are uncommon?
I'd think they would be a big plus in the south because they are easier to cool, but what do I know...
Why is it that basements are not as common in the south? I know they are rare in Texas too. Is it because tornadoes are uncommon?
I'd think they would be a big plus in the south because they are easier to cool, but what do I know...
They are very expensive and do not resell for the cost to build them.
We do not have the frost depth of northern climates, so it is not necessary to excavate several feet below grade to get a footer below frost depth. In my area, frost depth is about 15", and basement excavation would add another 8 feet +/- to the dig and to excavation costs.
Many areas have high water tables, and forcing a basement into a high water table area can make wetproofing difficult.
Expansive red clay can mean a higher chance of foundation wall failure.
Often it is just as cost efficient to add space above grade as it is to build a good hole in the ground.
The good news?
If you want one, you can have one. They are around, and many builders will construct a home with basement for you if you are willing to pay the premium to have one.
I love having a basement. When I was a kid our house in Ohio had one. We moved to California
when I was 12, no basement. Later married, had kids, our homes always had a slab. When we moved to
Colorado we bought a house with a basement, all that extra sq footage. It was finished so it doubled
the size of the house. About 6 years ago we had another house built, also with a basement, unfinished this time.
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