Tips To Expand Your Living Space Into The Basement

The most popular reasons homebuyers choose a property are location, price and a garden according to this article.

Size doesn’t always matter, or at least not initially, however in time homeowners that have settled for less space soon start wondering if they’ve made a mistake and may need to sell up.

Moving away from the location to get a larger home for the same price is an option; however, those reasons for choosing the current property are still there.

Moving to another home further out increases commuter travel to schools, work and local amenities so there has to be another option and there is, move up or down.  The attic and basement may be rooms that can be turned into liveable spaces for your family.

In this blog post, we look at how to use your basement as a workable solution to creating a new living area. The basement is a more obvious room to work with due to access and the lower cost to renovate.

Open Plan Design

The first tip is to opt for an open-plan design in the basement. Rather than creating several small rooms that can in a below-ground area feel dark, disjointed, and closed in, use interior design to create spaces within one open plan area.

Use Interior Design, Natural Light & Air

Interior design tricks can cleverly create zones or spaces in a room; using shelves, rugs and furniture without the need walls. For furniture, use a smaller than usual size and ideally go for a nordic theme which has thin legs for sofas, tables, chairs.

Basements are overlooked as liveable areas due to their dark, cold and often damp environs. Moisture that can not escape as easily below ground level can hang around the basement, but there are solutions to dehumidifying the space, so it’s drier and warmer. Basements are also notorious for their lack of natural light, which can really affect how you’d use the space.

If you can add windows for light and natural fresh air – do it. If not, a clever way to get natural light into the basement area is to extend it beyond the property’s existing footprint and then adding a ceiling skylight which could also become a feature in your garden.

The natural light changes the perception of the room, and adding an HVAC can draw in clean, warm air. Get an air conditioning unit that also has a dehumidifier feature to first take excessive moisture out the air before switching to a heating mode.

Light and Bright Colors

The room will seem larger when it’s a shade of white or if white doesn’t work for you, use a light, bright color palette. The room will seem uncluttered even with furniture, open and cheerful. The stairwell into the basement should be wide and light and ideally modern in design without the use of uprights behind each step. This will also make the room appear spacious.

Flooring

Flooring can add warmth; however, if the basement is likely to be a high-traffic zone, then you want to pick a flooring type that can really live up to all that wear and tear. There are many types of flooring materials, including tiles, laminate, hardwood floors, carpeting, resins.

Work with the Professionals

The final tip is easily the most important, and that’s to work with professionals. Tradespeople who are trained in various areas of home renovation and design like Home Pro have the inside knowledge and experience when it comes to drawing up a plan, choosing and sourcing materials, and tradespeople required to complete the task.  Plus you’ll finish your renovation within a realistic timeline.

Now with the basement sorted – are you ready to get started on the Attic?