Can You Dig It? – Practical Considerations for Basement Renovations
                     Can You Dig It? – Practical Considerations for 
Basement Renovations
  
Is it Feasible to Dig Out my Basement?
All basements can be dug out, but vary substantially in terms of the amount of 
quality useable space that can be created, and the difficulty (aka the cost) of 
cre ating that space.  The least practical pr ojects are small houses on level lots with 
shallow crawlspaces. 
What Types of New Spaces do I want to 
Create?
The use of the new space is another important aspect.  Most people opt to create 
habitable space (vs. non habitable) space, which means the space must meet the 
pro per height, insulation, heating and light  requirements for living spaces, which will 
then allow you to count the new square footage towards the value of your home.
The Parts of the Job you Probably weren’t 
Thinking About can be a Big Deal.
The use of the new space is another important aspect.  Most people opt to create 
habitable space (vs. non habitable) space, which means the space must meet the 
pro per height, insulation, heating and light  requirements for living spaces, which will 
then allow you to count the new square footage towards the value of your home.
   How Much Does all of this Cost?
Hopefully, if you are thinking about venturing into basement work, this article can 
help give you a greater appreciation of what is involved. You are basically doing a 
large structural job and then layering a major remodel on top of it, along with a redo 
of most of the building’s utilities. Currently, average costs are around $600 per 
square foot for complete dig outs with renovations. Since this is comparable with 
good quality remodeling work, second story additions are an alternative, though they 
are very different in character. Given the current values of homes in our area, this 
can still make economic and practical sense if you have the need and resources for 
either project. For those who need more space for expanding families, working at 
home, relatives moving in, a workout or yoga room, or just a place for the kids to 
have more space to navigate the new stay at home world we are in, this may be the 
perfect solution for you. This article was written by Jim Gardner of Jim Gardner 
Construction Inc.  Jim is a long-time Piedmont resident and has been doing 
structural repair in your neighborhood since 1983. 
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