Anyone ever renovated?

[jackieb]

We renovated in the uk it was a pain but we have just spotted a house which needs alot of work my hubby is handy it has a unfinshed basement has anyone ever convereted a basement how much did it cost?

thanks

[Bearsmom]

As long as the basement structure itself is fine (ie no leaks, cracks, etc), and you are both fairly handy, it really doesn't take that much. Hubby and I bought "the money pit" as we so affectionately have named our new house, and we finished the basement before we moved in. It ran us about $3500 for everything. BUT keep in mind, we did all the wiring/plumbing/drywalling ourselves. It was fun, and am I ever glad it's done!!!!!

[chico2]

Jackie,we basically redid our whole house,including turning an unfinished basement into a work-shop,2 X-tra bedrooms and a huge rec-room.
We built two decks outside,redid all the rooms upstairs and after 25yrs here it still is an ongoing project,a never-ending story...but that is home-ownership and it's fun....how much it cost's???Impossible to say,in the beginning you do what you can afford,usually meaning paint,later you can do the expensive stuff!!

[BMDLuver]

We've done it several times. Our last one was $4500 including wall to wall carpet and bathroom. My husband did a good portion of it with two friends in 5 days, then when we moved in, he kept at it for another 4 weekends.

[Schwinn]

Our last two houses we did lots of work. The last house we re-did the basement for probably a few grand. That one was half finished, so I took down a wall, installed a few outlets, cable and phone lines. The thing to keep in mind is that most times, a finished basement will not significantly raise the value of the home, depending on the style. Our old house I think it helped because the front foyer opened into the upstairs and the downstairs, but generally, like our current house which we are going to finish the basement, really the return on a finished basement is what you get in enjoyment. A lot of times, it's a negative return if you measure it in dollar terms only. But if you are looking at doing it for yourself, then I wouldn't worry about that, or about the cost, as much. The reason I say that is because you can work on it a bit at a time. Do what you need to get done for your immediate purposes. Our first task will be to do some drywall, so we can hang shelves and pictures. Once the baby is older, then I will need to build a bedroom so we have a spare room (since we are losing one).
Then, when he/she is older, with probably a brother or sister, I'll finish the rec room area, at first for me, then when they are older still, it'll become thier area. Though it won't be cheaper, that way, it won't be as much of an issue, since I won't be doing it all at once.

That all being said, cost to finish can vary greatly, depending on materials and how elaborate your plans are. Anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand dollars. It it's completely finished, cement walls and floor, and you are doing the whole area, I'd say plan for minimum $3 000, bare minimum.

[jackieb]

We are looking at it today the house needs work so we need to find out how much the basement is unfinished we could do that over time and hubby could do most of it. We have got to price up what else needs doing as it does need work we are thinking re wiring and maybe a new heating system hubby done all this in a previous house we will see today. Thanks all

[jackieb]

The house needs alot of majour work doing its overpcriced hubby wants to offer alot lower im hoping they dont accept it needs a little too much work for me.