Square Footage Can Be Maximized and Heat Escaped bt Remodeling the Basement

Copyright (c) 2010 Gerry Stringer

The depressing fact is real estate sales have sunk to an average of 24.5 percent lower than last year across America. More impactful than that to current homeowners are figures indicating values in real estate are off nearly 30 percent. Meaning if home purchases were recent, mortgages with 10 percent down at closing are already 20 percent underwater.

So the question for those homeowners who aren't ready to fold and want to hold onto their credit ratings and real property until the economy recovers is whether to remodel.

The basement is, of course, the natural place to deploy smart expansion. Interestingly, the appreciation in a home's value by remodeling or finishing the basement can offer energy savings vs. the expense that inherently comes with raising the roof (adding a second story) or expanding the footprint of the home.

How's that?

Well, a basement with exposed ducts allows valuable heat to be lost. The R-value of concrete's measurement is as low as 0.08/inch. Multiply that times the standard eight-foot height of a basement and there's savings to be had by simply furring out the walls and filling in with insulation and drywall. Uncovered heat ducts in an unfinished basement are the worst energy abuser, the heat dissipating into the cold basement through conduction.

Even the youngest baby boomers may not be old enough to remember potato cellars. But those come from America's Midwest will recall the cool dampness of the cellar and the function of that cool temperature to preserve food (okay, potatoes) that otherwise would go bad sooner than later. That same cool can be turned into a welcome summer retreat when used as an entertainment room, in-home theater, a peaceful corner of the house for homework or even a home office. Sans cold potatoes.

Besides rooms in which to live, homeowners are in dire need of storage space in 2010. According to Wikipedia, one in 10 U.S. households rent a self-storage unit in the year 2010. On average, a household spends $1,200 a year on a modest-sized storage unit, a cost that is repeated annually for many. You could fill an 18-foot long wall with 6-foot high Metro shelving for $1,200 and pay it completely off in a year with the money spared in storage costs.

And when it comes to rooms that can enhance the value of one's home from a 2010 economic perspective, top on the list is the home office. Now what does that tell you about employment trends? The number of self-employed people working full time and individuals with more than one job, one day job and one hobby/venture job operating from home is increasing as well as remote workplace opportunities.

Truly functional square footage is all about quality finishes. By the same token, basement space that would otherwise go unused can be converted into luxury square footage by a professional basement remodeling company.

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