Homes without basements

[ruffryder]

Why don't homes on the west side have basements? I realize if you are in a flood plane or have a high water table, a basement is a bad idea, but for those that are not, what gives? Seems like if you are going to build a foundation, you might as well keep digging and put some usable space down below.

Any builders or anyone else have any thoughts?

In the midwest, pretty much every house has a basement in it. They sure are really nice, especially when you can double the square footage of the house and I don't think you get taxed on it, at least not in Illinois.

 

[jacmmaxwell]

Nothin goes untaxed in WA, in fact Gov. Gregoire will send you the tax bill for the number of caracters used in your above post.

No I think it's the era the homes were built and the structure of the NW soil layers does not always make digging a basement easy. I have only owned one home with a basement and yes the extra space is awsome for storage and recreation. Not to mention how much easier home repairs are in an unfinished basement vs a crawl space.

 

[winter brew]

Time and cost. Moisture problems with the basements I've seen in the area. Alot of older homes do have them.

 

[ruffryder]

Time and cost. Moisture problems with the basements I've seen in the area. A lot of older homes do have them.

Due to the constant high humidity? Don't people buy dehumidifiers for their basements?

 

[Lushbomb]

i don't really know the percentages and all. but certainly i know of ALOT of homes with basements.. including mine. which are mostly older homes FYI

 

[rmk2112]

I am in at least 3 different homes around Puget Sound everyday as a Service Plumber...most of what I see are split levels or California splits. If you get into Seattle proper and/or some of the outlying areas, there are quite a few homes with basements, but I think the majority around this area is Ramblers or Splits,

My .02 worth

 

[ruffryder]

what is a "california split" ?

 

[afrank3594]

When I build I try to either build a split of everything above ground. Trying to put wells in for windows that will fill with water and the basement ending up like a cave makes it a tough sell. When your paying by the sqr foot you may as well build up or over the garage. And last but not least its more dirt to deal with on a small lot.

 

[Tmann]

Water, water and water

I do home inspection for a living and typically what I have found is that in any house built prior to the 1990's the basements were not water tight and are basically over sized crawl spaces without proper ventilation. Mold growth and water penetrations in basements and crawl spaces are a constant issue around here due to high water tables and a touch of rain and damp months in this area. Unconditioned areas are very difficult to control the moisture. I think in the midwest you also need shelters for winds or something.

We do tax sub grade living space in this area but the tax rate is slightly lower and they just don't have the resale.

California split I think is where you have a mid entry with a side entry like a mother in law "don't quote me on that"