Transform your unfinished basement into beautiful, functional living space. If you need more living space, you might need to look no further than under your feet. A surprisingly flexible space, the basement when finished accordingly, provides room for several options.

Most homes have a fully enclosed basement, complete with walls, a floor and a ceiling. Best of all, it’s a space you already own – there is no need to construct and expensive addition or move to a new house to gain a family room, extra bedroom or a hobby area.

You can convert most unfinished basements to living space with a minimum of effort and cost, provided the area is dry and good repair. With a little creativity you can quickly dispel the notion of basements being perpetually damp and gloomy.

By adding windows, lighting fixtures, and personal touches you can transform any unfinished basement into an inviting, bright, and cheerful living space.

Of course, before you hire a basement finisher - or if you’re a hands-on person, begin your DIY basement finishing project - and explore your basement finishing ideas, you’ll need to know if your home basement meets certain basic code requirements, if it will remain free of moisture problems, and how much work will be required to complete your ideal project.

There's a lot to consider when planning a basement finishing project. Besides your basement finishing ideas on what you're going to do with the space - which is the fun part - you need to decide on how you're going to finish or remodel it and what basement finisher to hire. Basement home remodeling can be a daunting process and homeowners looking for basement finishing ideas can easily begin to feel overwhelmed. With all the information out there, it's difficult to know what's best.

The following questions and answers will help you to determine what you’ll need to make your basement a great living space:

• Basement Moisture Problems - How can you tell if your basement is dry enough to be a living area?
• Basement Wall Cracks - If your basement walls have some cracks, you will need to repair them before you finish your basement.
• Radon Gas Problems - You might already hear that radon gas is present in some basements. How can you tell if it is a problem in your house?