Does Basement Waterproofing Increase Home Value
A common question we get from homeowners in Toronto and The Bay Area is, “does basement waterproofing increase home values?”. The quick and simple answer is yes and we’ll try to explain how.
More Livable Square Footage
Basement waterproofing offers many benefits to homeowners with the most obvious being that it helps prevent water damage to your home, furnishings, and irreplaceable personal possessions. Not only does waterproofing protect these things but it also provides you with peace of mind at the same time as it offers an improved quality of life. With the price of real estate in Toronto and the smaller lot footprints, most homes enjoy, having a basement that can be used as living space offers valuable livable square footage to a home. Lisa Simpson, a senior real estate specialist in The Bay Area, says adding a finished basement adds value to the price of a home in The Bay Area due to the limitations of expanding a home horizontally due to limited lot sizes.
Avoid Costly Repairs & Potential Mold Issues
You don’t have to worry about cleaning up and replacing items after the next big storm hits as you’ll always have a dry basement to venture to. And if you should happen to suffer water damage it may not be covered by your insurance policy. This also means you’re living in a safer environment without the worry of mold and your indoor air quality won’t be a concern to you and your family. A dry basement means you can use the area to create extra living space. No home buyer will want to pay top dollar for a home that is immediately going to require very costly waterproofing repairs in addition to hazardous mold cleanup. A good home remodeling contractor is vital to stopping a basement leak as it is very difficult to fix. When we renovated our basement, we hired a great remodeling contractor in Oakland that had experience with basement renos.
Adding Valuable Flex Space
This allows you to finish the basement and use it for whatever purpose you choose, such as an extra bedroom, an office, family/rec room, bar, games room or gym etc. With more usable living space in the home, the value of it will naturally increase. Many people are starting to work form home and would love a home office as well as a second family room or hobby room, a finished basement can be used for some or all of these flex spaces. If the home isn’t waterproofed you’re always at risk of water damage in the basement.
In reality, it costs money to properly waterproof a home and it isn’t exactly inexpensive. However, the money you lay out on the process will almost certainly be recouped if you should decide to sell the house. In fact, you may even make a tidy profit as it’s an excellent selling point and one that potential homeowners are willing to pay a little extra for when buying a home. Most people would rather move into a home that’s already waterproofed than have to do it themselves.
On the other side of the coin, if the home isn’t waterproofed you may not get what you ask for when selling it since the buyer knows they’ll have to shell out the cost of having it done. This is especially true if you’ve suffered water damage in the structure in the past.
Get A Higher Selling Price For Your Home
It’s never to late to have your basement waterproofed and there are several ways of doing it. The basement doesn’t need to be leaking either to have the work done. You can look at a waterproofed basement as an insurance policy. You may pay the premiums not but you’ll cash in later.
If you do decide to professionally waterproof your basement before selling your home be sure to work with a waterproofing company which offers a transferable warranty. This means the warranty will cover the new homeowners when they move in. Be sure the waterproofing company has been around for a long time as many companies will offer extended warranties but will most likely not be in business after a few years. Unfortunately, the basement waterproofing industry has many opportunists who offer waterproofing services for a short time before leaving the industry as it requires more work and expertise than people realize.
Basement waterproofing can also be considered a valuable home repair as well as it’s something that’s designed to last. The process helps protect your investment as a damp, wet basement will decrease both the value of your home and the interest in it from potential buyers.
