This is the second most often asked question that we get at Landen Design Build! And similar to new home building cost, or for that matter renovation cost, the basement development cost will all depend on what you want!
What is the current state of your basement?
However, there are a few questions you need to answer before any “Real contractor” can offer you any kind of estimate for your basement development: (Note: see ballpark costing at the end)
- Is your basement a totally “RAW basement area” meaning there are NO existing exterior framed walls, where all you have is “RAW” concrete walls showing? If so, do you have any evidence of water problems, cracked concrete foundation walls or floors, etc. that will first need repairs?
- If your basement does have a framed perimeter wall (put in by the original builder?) is it full height framing or just framed to minimum “frost coverage level”?
- If you do have a perimeter framed-in wall, is it already insulated and if so what is it insulated with? For example R-12 batt insulation?
- If you have an existing framed perimeter wall is there any electrical rough-in already done?
- Is there already a rough-in for a “future” basement bathroom? If so, do you think this rough-in is in a location that will work with your planned development?
- Regarding any existing mechanical ducting, will any of it need to be modified to make your basement development more feasible, also, do the existing basement heat runs come down to floor level, or are they installed in the ceiling?
- Does there happen to be a plumbing stack, tell-a post, or other structural members in the way of your planned development space?
- Will you need to add any new windows?
- Will you want any soundproofing done?
- Is there good construction access for a contractor to bring in/down materials, such as lumber & drywall etc.?
- Is there a bunch of your storage STUFF in the way of where work will need to be done?
- Is the electrical panel full, meaning are there at least 4-6 open circuit breaker slots
- Will someone be home while workmen are there, for example, will there be children and or pets around while workmen are there?
- Can the contractor put a “lock-box” on with a key, so that workmen & trades can let themselves in without the owner needing to be home?
- Are there any other things that you know will need to be addressed?
What features should you basement development have?
Once you have the above questions answered, an experienced contractor can then start to put together an idea of development cost. However, you will still need to address what features you wish your new basement development to have included in it such as:
- A games/family room
- Wet-bar
- Bathroom, and the number of bath pieces, such as toilet, shower, tub, and vanity
- Sauna or steam shower
- Media room
- Bedrooms (NOTE: will require a code approved egress window)
- Laundry room
- Along with your targeted room sizes for each requested area
Getting a detailed Basement Plan
From here a qualified contractor or home designer can start to put together a detailed floor plan and basement plan, after which you then need to figure out the finishes and specifications you want to include, like:
- Passage doors type and finish
- Baseboard, casing and window trim type and finish, also any stair railing requirements
- Flooring type and finish, plus if you want an elevated sub-floor for a warmer floor
- Ceiling finish
- Bathroom fixtures, tile and so forth
- Cabinetry and built-ins
- Or any other specialty items
With all the above information and a detailed basement plan in hand, you can now get some realistic bid’s in form a few different contractors.
Now what is the cost of developing a basement?
Now, we did say we would answer the question of how much your average basement development area will cost you to have done, so here are a few Ball-Park numbers: (KEEP IN MIND THEY ARE BALL PARK NUMBERS ONLY!). Based on 2020 Calgary and area AVERAGE costing data.
- A basic set of basement development plans (permit ready) will cost you about $800 to $1,000. Note: if you engage Landen Design Build for these plans, and you also engage Landen to develop your basement, then the plan’s cost are credited back to the client! (NOTE: we are one of the very few contractors that do this!)
- The basic floorplan area of your planned basement development will probability range between $35 to $45 per. sq. ft. which should get you to the drywall done stage, with basic trim and flooring installed. Note: A higher end specification might run you as much as $60 per sq. ft.
- A 3-pc bathroom will run you about $8,000 to $10,000 depending on what would be needed for sewer and water line rough-in work. Note: If you need to open up the concrete floor for a new bathroom, add $1,500 to $2,000!
- Adding a sauna can vary greatly depending on the size and type, but tend to run between $1,500 to $2,500
- A steam shower will cost about $500 to $1,000 more than a sauna would cost you
- Adding a 4’wide by 3’ high (full egress) basement window, including concrete cutting and steel window well, will run you about $2,000 (in the summer time) if you’re planning to do this work in the winter time add $500 to $800 to jackhammer the frozen dirt out!
- Adding a raised sub floor to keep the basement floor warm will run you about $5 to $6 per sq. ft.
- For things like a media room, you can kind-a blow your whole budget on, as these types of features can run anywhere from a few thousand to MANY thousand dollars!!!!
- Same thing for wet bars and built-in cabinetry, this can range wildly, but for very rough budget numbers figure on $350 to $450 per lin. foot of cabinet
- Items like sound proofing the ceiling can run you about $3.00 to $5.00 per sq. ft. (depending on how much sound proofing you want! NOTE: there is NO such thing as 100% sound proof!
- Moving an existing plumbing stack, tell-a post, or other structural work can become very expensive, in most cases runs well into the thousands of dollars, and the only way to know for sure if this type of work can even be done will require an engineer to look at the problem, who then issues an engineered design, plus needs to do an inspection report, which will add another $800 to $1,000 to the above note cost.
- If your electrical panel is FULL, you will need to add a “sub-panel” this can cost $800 to $1,200 to have done.
BIG NOTE: The above ballpark numbers do not include any contractor mark-up fees, overhead, permit cost, delivery fees etc. and are based on normal builder “volume discounted” rates, if planning on doing your own work, you should add 15% or so to some of the above budget numbers for reflect retail pricing.
Basement Renovation Conclusions
So to sum up, the only way to get an accurate budget for your basement development, is to first ask someone like Landen Design Build to create a detailed basement development Plan, meaning a permit ready (blue-print) that a contractor can send out to his trades and suppliers to get confirmed pricing on. And, where you have also already selected all of your finishes, complete with all model numbers and specifications. That way you will hopefully avoid the nasty Change Order EXTRAS, or the old contractor’s trick, when they say “Wow! That’s not on the plans or specs, so that will be EXTRA”.
NOTE: With Landen Design Build your first initial design consultation is no charge, and if you do go ahead with our detailed design and planning service and also decide to use Landen Design-Build as your basement development contractor, then your plans are done for you effectively at NO CHARGE! As we fully credit-back any planning and design fees to the client if they also build with us! Note this design fee is not just simply padded into the basement cost, as you do get the chance to take our plans and shop them around to other contractors to make sure we at Landen are honest and competitive with our pricing!
