Are you hoping to remodel or finish your basement with flooring, ceiling, and extra rooms like bedrooms and a bathroom? Wondering how to maximize your return on investment or ROI?

One of the first things any homeowner wants to know is the potential return you could get for your investment. When you sell your house in the future, will the finished basement be worth putting more money on the home’s sale price, or will you end up eating the cost of that investment?

There are two parts to this question since basement remodeling often goes hand in hand with basement waterproofing. So, let’s break it down by parts:

• Waterproofing alone and
• Finishing the space to make it another living space in your house. 

Basement Waterproofing ROI

If you’ve ever lived in a house with a basement that leaks, you know what a disaster it is. Not only can that flood destroy your belongings, but getting rid of the water can disrupt your life while dealing with the mess.

Then, there is the question of whether mold will grow once everything is wet. It’s not worth putting any money into finishing your basement unless you are positive there are no leaks. 

Waterproofing your basement against leaks is the first step before you can consider any remodeling.

The good news is that it works in your favor if all you do is waterproof your basement. You can expect a 30% return on investment for waterproofing.

The bad news is that if you have a basement that leaks, it can be almost impossible to sell it until you fix it. An inspector is very likely to spot any evidence and tell the buyers to have you waterproof it anyway.

If you live in an area prone to sewer backups during heavy rains, you know it can make your life miserable with flooding in your basement once every few years.

There are ways you can keep floodwaters from your basement. However, it’s a more significant project involving re-grading your lawn in some cases. Ultimately, it might be worth it. 

Finished Basement ROI

Once your basement is bone dry, it’s safe to make it into your new haven for parties, workouts, kids, and more.

The great news is that a dry, finished basement is worth about 75% of what you paid to remodel it. That means, if you spent $10,000 to finish it, you could expect to get an extra $7,500 from the sale price, as long as the space is finished for general use and not highly personalized.

Whether you use carpeting, tile, or hardwood, having a warm floor in the basement is a huge plus. It can help drive away the extra moisture you sometimes get with an underground room.

Rooms with plenty of light and space are a must-have in the basement, with neutral colors. A bathroom is a good idea in a large basement as it allows guests and bedroom occupants to be more comfortable. 

Bringing it Home

You can be confident your basement remodeling investment will give you good returns as long as it’s waterproofed. Make sure the space is clean, bright, and neutral, and potential buyers will love it.

If you live in Southeast Michigan and have any questions regarding finishing your basement, please call. We would be honored to help.

Call today!

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Are you considering adding an egress window to your basement?

People are spending more time at home than ever these days. Having that extra space to stretch in a finished basement is key to making home a place you want to be.

A finished basement can give you another hang-out space, away from the main action. Plus, there are opportunities for a home gym, extra bedrooms, bathrooms, and offices.

If you have a large enough basement, you can almost double your house’s usable square footage by finishing your basement.

The top concern for making basements into living spaces is the moisture, leaking, and mold issues that sometimes come with finishing a room underground.

Once you have dealt with leaking or moisture build-up, it’s essential to provide anyone sleeping or living in the basement with a route of escape in the event of a fire.

What is an Egress Window?

Most basements aren’t built into a hill, allowing a walk-out or large windows. If you get any windows at all in a basement, they are most likely tiny and high up in the walls.

Egress means to “get out” or “escape.” An egress window is designed to be big enough to allow anyone trapped in the room to escape to the outside quickly.

Egress windows in basements are built by digging a window well from the house’s foundation and cutting a large window shape into the concrete foundation wall.

You can install a prefabricated, easy-to-open window into the spot, or buy a specialty window. Prefabricated windows are generally the cheaper option, usually starting around $2,000. However, you can spend up to $7,000 on a custom egress installation.

How Easy is it to DIY an Egress Window?

As with many aspects of home remodeling, it’s best left to professionals unless you have a lot of experience. The positive side of using a professional team is that you can usually have the job done in one day, start to finish. They come in with a mini excavator to dig the well, cut the hole, install the window, and backfill to finish the outside. 

Here are some considerations before you try to install an egress window yourself:

Bringing it Home

Adding an egress window to your finished basement will make it safer, more livable, up to code, and give you tons of natural light. It’s a no-brainer if you’re thinking of remodeling.

Is your home located in Southeast Michigan? Please call if you have any questions about this or anything else remodeling. We’re always here to help. 

Call today!

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So, you want to finish your basement. Good for you! It means more space, more functionality, and a better life for you and your family. Now you have to find the perfect basement contractor.

How do you know who to pick?

There are companies whose specialty is basement finishing and remodeling. They do nothing but basements. Many contractors do all kinds of renovation and finishing, and can do the work just as well.

When it comes to your house, you want the job done in a timely fashion, on budget, with few surprises. You also want the quality of the work to last for many years. 

One Way to Find the Right Basement Contractor

In your search for the perfect basement contractor or basement remodeling company, you should interview and get a quote from several candidates, so you have something to compare.

As you listen to what each contractor has to say, there are three red flags to watch out for.

Red Flag #1: No Permits

A company that delivers top-quality work every time will be up-front about the fact that they never do work without pulling permits and without ensuring that everything they do is up to code.

If you are looking for someone who will do the job “under the table,” so to speak, you might be setting yourself up for failure in two situations: 

Red Flag #2: Can Start Work Right Away

Most great contractors have a full schedule of work lined up long before they come to give you a quote. There’s a reason for this.

Great work speaks for itself and comes in high demand. Many firms will provide you with a start date weeks or even months out from when you agree upon terms and sign a contract.

If a contractor says he can start the next day, you should make it your business to determine why. 

Likewise, if someone says they can complete the job in two weeks, you should be suspect and ask them how that could be. Most basement companies will tell you it takes 6-8 weeks to complete all the essential work in a basement renovation.

Red Flag #3: Low Bid

As we’ve discussed on this blog in the past, one low bid is usually the one you need to throw out. It can signal that a contractor is going to cut corners to get the job.

Where will the corners be cut? Maybe materials, maybe personnel, but the point is you don’t want that on your job. A reputable company knows it can’t cut corners and still make everything safe and make sure everyone gets paid. 

A higher bid could also be a red flag. However, it’s worth asking about the details of what is causing the higher cost. Is this contractor going along with your ideas without giving his input from years of experience? 

To recap, if you hear exactly what you want to hear, it might be the worst possible choice. We understand that many homeowners want to save money and get their basement renovation started right away.

Just beware that these are often red flags, and you may end up paying more to fix the bad job that was done the first time. 

Pro Tips for Hiring a Basement Contractor

Hiring a professional to finish your basement is like any other home remodeling project. You want to make sure you tick all these boxes:

Bringing it Home

Choosing the right basement contractor often comes down to doing a lot of homework and asking many questions. If you look out for these red flags, you can weed out any potential problems right out of the gate.

Do you live in Southeast Michigan? If you have any questions about remodeling your basement or any part of your house, please give us a call! We’re always here to help.

Call today!

Photo: LucenaMedina / CC BY-SA resized

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Basement finishing presents different challenges than above-ground rooms. Even in the driest basements, you must combat moisture and mold. There are plumbing and ventilation in the ceiling that often must stay accessible.

Moreover, what if your basement floods? Will you risk ruining much of the finishing work, or are there options to withstand a flood?

Basement Flooring Options

Each flooring material has positives and drawbacks. However, some are clear winners when it comes to basement finishing.

Basement Walls Options

Basement walls are tricky for the same reason as flooring – moisture and flooding events.

However, nothing will make your basement cozier or more useful than putting up interior walls to create more usable square footage and hide the house’s mechanics like HVAC and water heaters. Make sure you or your contractor know to leave adequate air supply for these large appliances.

Basement Ceiling Options

You may have heard that you should never finish your basement ceiling because of how difficult it can be to access needed plumbing and electrical work if you do.

Temporary options can be problematic since basement ceilings tend to be lower than upstairs anyway. 

Basement Finishing Takeaway

There are many great basement finishing options for your budget and design desires to finish the walls, floor, and ceiling of your basement. If you live in Southeast Michigan, please give us a call if you have any questions! We’re always ready to help. 

Call today!

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I don’t know about you, but going into fall weather and looking forward to an uncertain winter upgrading the house is starting to look better and better.

You might be finding yourself in the same boat as many others in Michigan, trying to get more out of your house’s square footage.

Do you need an extra hang-out spot, a playroom for the kids, a guest room for the in-laws, a wet bar, or some of each? If you are only using your basement for storage right now, you are probably wasting a prime opportunity. 

Do You Have a Dry Basement?

One of the first questions to answer is whether your basement has, or could potentially have a water problem. There is no sense spending thousands of dollars to finish a space that will get ruined by moisture damage.

If you are lucky enough to have a house built with an exterior waterproofing method, you can probably get started on that remodel right away.

Exterior waterproofing involves coating the foundation with polymers and membranes that stand up to moisture over long periods. They are expensive to retrofit and don’t work with the drainage system of all homes. 

An interior water drainage system can be installed in a few days, and it’s an excellent alternative to the more expensive exterior system.

This method keeps water away from the house’s footers and allows it to drain underneath the basement floor. Interior sealants can be used to seal out moisture further and keep the floor and walls dry.

Basement Remodel Obstacles and Uses

Are there any other obstacles to finishing like low ceilings or plumbing and ventilation problems?

A contractor should spot the trouble areas right away and come up with a plan to address them. Whether you want a playroom, a teenaged daughter’s bedroom, another bathroom, or all of the above, it’s good to get a professional opinion about how best to make the space flow and where the plumbing needs to go.

Budget Concerns

For most people, one of the major obstacles is the cost of finishing a whole basement. A finished basement can cost anywhere from $10,000 to $100,000 depending on your space’s size and how much plumbing, waterproofing, or structural changes need to happen. 

There are times when a basement remodeler has to re-route ductwork or shore up a beam to correct the mistakes the original builder made or make the basement more livable. An average price for a full basement is around $30,000. 

Basement Contractors

You might want to save money and be okay with cutting corners in the basement. However, the last thing you want to hear is, “we don’t need permits for this,” and “I can start tomorrow.”

In years of experience in this business, we know that

Particularly in the basement, building codes can save lives. We don’t work without pulling permits, and you should be suspect of a contractor who wants to.

Additionally, most of these basement remodel companies are booked up to two months out when they quote a job. It means they are doing good work.

There’s nothing more disheartening than spending money only to have the basement start deteriorating a year after finishing the job. 

Basement Remodel in Southeast Michigan

When your house is your workplace, your kids’ school, and one of the few hang-out spots, you need every square inch of it to be functional, clean, and beautiful.

If you’re thinking about finishing your basement, don’t hesitate to give us a call. We would love the opportunity to help!

Call today!

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Are you thinking about your house a lot more lately? Wondering how you can add functional space? Are you considering finishing your basement and adding a basement bathroom?

One major question that comes up whenever you talk about finishing a basement is whether you should add a bathroom and if it’s worth the expense.

It all depends on the size and how you want the space to function. In addition, there are some budget concerns, depending on how the plumbing in your house is laid out.

How Big is Your Basement? 

If you are lucky enough to have a basement that runs the entire footprint of the house, and you’re going to finish the whole thing, keep in mind what you want to do with the space.

If you have 2,000 square feet and you are using the entire area, you are not going to want to walk upstairs to use the bathroom.

However, if you are talking about one 400 square foot area, you are probably not doing much living down there.

How Do You Want the Space to Function?

Do you want a home gym or a T.V. room in your basement? Do you plan to install a bar and host parties down there? Will you retrofit the space to build more bedrooms?

Home gyms and T.V. rooms don’t technically need a spot for a bathroom. However, would you use the area for guests?

What if you have a large party? When you are talking about having a bar and hosting guests in your basement, you want a convenient bathroom to save guests from having to walk upstairs.

For living space such as a guest room or extra bedrooms, a shower is essential.

Bottom line? You are not going to be sorry you put in a bathroom if you plan to use the space often. 

The Cost of Adding a Basement Bathroom

The average cost of adding a basement bathroom will vary due to a number of factors. A modest estimate is in the range of $10,000 to $15,000. The overall cost can be higher for several reasons.

Here are the things that can make adding a basement bathroom more or less expensive:

Bringing it Home

Adding a basement bathroom could be the thing that completes your space. Do you live in Southeast Michigan? Call us today with any questions! We’re always honored to help. 

Call Today

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