Finished basements are growing from "nice-to-have" features to near "must-haves" in most homes across the U.S. The basement is expanding from its traditional role of a storage or laundry space to become anything from a lower-level suite to a home theater or office. A recent study by the National Association of Realtors® and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry found nearly three-fifths of homeowners said the top reason for remodeling a basement is to "add features and improve livability." With people putting more money towards their basement, USA Today highlighted several of the popular trends for many basement projects.
Brighten It Up
Lighting is a critical component of an inviting basement, so industry experts advise plenty of recessed LED lighting as well as accent lighting or side table lamps. Homeowners can also replace existing small windows with larger ones to let in more natural light.
Good lighting will make a basement “feel like a natural living space,” says Lucy O’Brien, an interior designer in Philadelphia.
Mirrors, as well as metallic or any other “highly reflective” wallpaper on the ceiling, also are good tricks to reflect light and liven up a basement space that’s “usually dingy and not very interesting,” she says.
If homeowners want to make their ceilings feel higher, they can skip a dropped ceiling and leave the electrical wiring and existing structure of the wood beams exposed and paint them white, Mary Weichert, a real estate agent in Chatham, N.J., says.
Vinyl Flooring
Even though carpet has traditionally been used for basement flooring because it’s “softer and warmer,” Dennis Gehman, owner of a design remodeling company in Harleysville, Pa.,says luxury vinyl plank or vinyl tile flooring is “taking off.”
“It looks really good and it’s pretty inexpensive compared with tile or wood,” he says, adding that most of the vinyl flooring comes with a lifetime warranty for residential use.
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