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Does finishing a basement add square footage to the home? We just recently finished our basement and are in the process of getting it reappraised and are trying to find out. It does have windows and a door leading to the outside as well as the door from upstairs to downstairs. Thanks!
Does finishing a basement add square footage to the home? We just recently finished our basement and are in the process of getting it reappraised and are trying to find out. It does have windows and a door leading to the outside as well as the door from upstairs to downstairs. Thanks!
It is a regional thing.
Some areas, No.
But, where I live, Yes.
However, the living area below grade does not appraise for the same value as above grade living area.
Does finishing a basement add square footage to the home?
No. An absolute and unequivocal NO.
Quote:
We just recently finished our basement and are in the process of getting it reappraised and are trying to find out. It does have windows and a door leading to the outside as well as the door from upstairs to downstairs.
The investment may still be counted toward value...
you have added utility and function...
but finishing the basement does not make a 1200sf house into a 2400sf house.
When the time comes to sell?
You'll have a 1200sf (or whatever the number is) house with a "finished basement".
But, where I live, Yes.
However, the living area below grade does not appraise for the same value as above grade living area.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MrRational
No. An absolute and unequivocal NO.
The investment may still be counted toward value...
you have added utility and function...
but finishing the basement does not make a 1200sf house into a 2400sf house.
When the time comes to sell?
You'll have a 1200sf (or whatever the number is) house with a "finished basement".
hth
Hmmmm....
So, it would seem that someone is right and someone is wrong.
OP, you pays your money and you takes your chances. Such is the way of free info on the internet.
I would suggest that you post the query in your local, St. Louis CD forum, to get a local opinion.
But, I suspect that your appraiser will have a clue, too.
In my area they are measured (and valued) separately. But like almost any home improvement, the appraisal value and your out of pocket expense will vary widely (50% or more). If you are doing it to add to a potential sales price you may be disappointed. If you are doing it to enjoy your home more than you would without it, then enjoy.
When I lived in NY you were taxed on a finished basement. Hence the reason 90% of basements on Long Island are illegal. So yes.
I always considered liveable space meaning if heated/cooled then it counts as square footage.
I have seen some fake people out by saying "under roof" thus counting an unheated/cooled space like a garage, enclosed porch, etc.
That said, list a FROG and in some parts of the country all know what you mean but others will be scratching their head as to what a FROG is. Other examples:
1. Regime fees. What are they?
2. Home built on an incline where the bottom level front is below ground, but the bottom level back has glass slider doors out to the back yard. Is this level a basement?
3. In some places a room heated/cooled and having a closet can be called bedroom no matter. Thus can a FROG heated/cooled with a closet be called a bedroom?
Many issues/questions/answers are regional and some can be based on local laws.
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