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I know you can lift a house and dig out a basement under the existing house. Would it be a better idea to say dig out the back yard and add the basement so that it's not under the house? Digging underneath the house just enough to add stairs from inside the house into the basement. I have searched the internet to find others that might have gone this route but didn't have any luck. It seems everyone raises their house and adds underneath. Is my idea of doing a back yard basement way out there or something? I would think my way would be much less expensive but can't find any info.
Wow, You would be better off buying a new house with a basement, the foundation is not just something you can change on a whim. There will need to be soils tests done, engineering done, not to mention the existing conditions and engineering that will need to be known in the existing structure. It will be VERY expensive. I don't really follow you when you refer to "backyard basement" if you could explain in more detail.
What you're talking about in the backyard sounds like a very big storm or bomb shelter. The exception would be that you want it to go under the house. I've never heard of doing something like that, either. However, anything is possible. It's just money.
Personally, I wouldn't want to end up with something that's sooooo different it would turn everybody off when I tried to sell it. People expect certain things and room under the backyard isn't one of them. If something is so different that nobody has ever seen it before, they will tend to go elsewhere. It will make the house hard to sell or worth a lot less than it otherwise would be worth.
I would agree that it's probably less work and trouble to buy a different house. Another option would be to build a second story instead of a basement if all you're seeking is additional living space. It would increase your sq ft at a much lower cost and with less trouble for you in the short and long run.
Also, above ground square footage has a higher value than below ground finished space. So, in addition to the costs being lower it's likely that you will add more to the value of your house than you would add with a basement.
Most of the homes that are going to be in my price range are older with either crawl spaces or no basements at all (unless I get lucky) and location and lot size is more important to me. I can always add on to or renovate the house, but I can't add more land. New home construction is out of the question for the areas that I'm looking at in NJ, way too expensive.
From my research I have found that someone else payed approx. 30K to lift their house and add a basement. I don't really know if that is reasonable since I don't have anything else to compare to.
My idea is to eliminate having to lift the house. Basically dig out the back yard for the basement and dig just a little under the house to add the stairs from inside the house to the basement. So the basement would actually be located behind the house under ground in the back yard.
Does this seem reasonable or is my thinking way out there? I would assume my way would be cheaper since you're not raising the house and would be less labor intensive.
My logic tells me that is should be possible, but then again I'm not in the construction business and I could be completely wrong.
What you're talking about in the backyard sounds like a very big storm or bomb shelter. The exception would be that you want it to go under the house. I've never heard of doing something like that, either. However, anything is possible. It's just money.
Personally, I wouldn't want to end up with something that's sooooo different it would turn everybody off when I tried to sell it. People expect certain things and room under the backyard isn't one of them. If something is so different that nobody has ever seen it before, they will tend to go elsewhere. It will make the house hard to sell or worth a lot less than it otherwise would be worth.
I would agree that it's probably less work and trouble to buy a different house. Another option would be to build a second story instead of a basement if all you're seeking is additional living space. It would increase your sq ft at a much lower cost and with less trouble for you in the short and long run.
Also, above ground square footage has a higher value than below ground finished space. So, in addition to the costs being lower it's likely that you will add more to the value of your house than you would add with a basement.
So, that's my take. Good luck on this decision.
I agree with you, and I would eventually plan on expanding to a second story as well as building out. My idea is to do everything in steps. When I do purchase, I am intending to purchase where I plan on living for a very long time. I am planning/hoping that this will be my last home purchase (unless I win the lottory). I want to start out small with location being most important and then slowly growing it into my dream home. A basement is very important to me because I would like to have my dream home theater and rec room eventually and would want it away from the other living areas to keep out the extra noise. I would think that I would want the basement to be the first step and then eventually build an addition on top of it.
You will defiantly need to lift the house. Pouring concrete requires a 5'-0" overdig at the minimum away from the new walls. The foundation of a house is not something you mess with lightly. The foundations main job is to keep your house from literally falling apart, or sinking into the ground. You also are required to tie the house to the foundation with anchor bolts which will be imbeded into the concrete at 30" on center along the perimeter of the house. The foundation walls are not the only concern, the soils types need to be tested to see if poured concrete footings, or poured caissons can be used, where the water table is at, and the soils conditions which will drastically change the type of foundation that can be used. If the water table is high, you can forget ever having a basement, it would require way too much in the way of drainage systems to make it feasible. Some older homes can be picked up off the foundation, and moved onto a new foundation. This is extremely expensive, I would estimate quite a bit more than 30,000. during this time, you would not be able to live in the house due to a weekend structural state, and the fact that your plumbing would not be hooked up, nor would your electrical. It can be done, but you would be better off trying to find something with a basement already built. This may cost just as much as finding an existing home with basement.
I have designed many foundations for new construction, They are not something to take lightly. Afterall, they are what hold your house above ground, to the ground, and together.
We had a house in California that had foundation problems. We got prices to repace the crawl space foundation ($25,000) or to lift the house and install a full basement ($40,000). This was ten years ago and did not include repair of cracked plaster, realigning doors, etc. It also did not include replacing or extending the utilities which could cost many tens of thousands more.
Ultimately we found someone who repaired only the bad section of the foundation for $4000. The plaster damage was minimal.
Its funny to see this thread since, when we lived in tornado alley in Indiana, I looked into something similar. The basic issue was that digging a big pit so close to the house could cause big foundation issue further on. I'm sure that if is done with care, it's possible. If a shelter is what you want then there are many above ground ones that can be installed in your garage or inside the house. If its space you're after you may be safer going with bumping up your roof and adding on a floor. Just check that your structure can take hte added weight.
I don't currently have a house. I'm asking this question because when I do go and look at houses to purchase I want to know what I can compromise on. If I find a location and lot size that I really like and the house happens to not have a basement, I want to know if I would be able to add one or forced to look for another house with a basement but not as good location. Of course I will do my best to find a house with a basement, but I might not be that lucky. I also don't want to have to move again and if you know anything about NJ you would find that there are minimal affordable options if you want a good location with good schools. Most houses in those locations are 500K+ unless you find a really old, small fixer upper. I'm just researching right now so I can make the best possible decision later on.
A basement is very important to me because I would like to have my dream home theater and rec room eventually and would want it away from the other living areas so that it doesn't disturb the rest of the house. If you have ever looked into home theaters, a basement is considered the best space to use for multiple reasons. Not to mention I don't know what kind of restrictions the towns will have on additions. I may not be able to add more sqft above ground if they have restrictions on the maximum sqft per size of lot (variances and such).
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