The Ultimate Basement Renovation Checklist

If you love your house but are beginning to feel a little cramped, you may consider a basement renovation. If you have an unfinished or partially finished basement, a renovation is a great way to provide more livable space for your household. Use our basement renovation checklist to get organized and reduce the stress of this rewarding project.

Preliminary Basement Renovation Checklist

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You may want to DIY some of the work to save on the cost to finish a basement. Before starting any demolition or construction on your own, you should follow a few preliminary steps to prepare for the work.

• Determine your budget

• Secure a home improvement loan if necessary

• Decide what you can DIY and where you need help from pros

• Draw up plans for the work

• Test the basement for moisture seepage

• Test the basement for radon

• Fix any issues with the foundation

• Waterproof the foundation

• Determine which pros you need to hire

• Apply for building permits

• Haul unwanted items out of the basement

• Collect the tools and supplies you’ll need

Full Basement Renovation Checklist

If you need to renovate the entire basement, you’ll have a different checklist than a partial renovation. At various phases in the process, you may have to stop work until local building inspectors can sign off on the progress. The steps involved in a full basement renovation checklist include:

• Demolish any existing walls and structures you won’t be keeping

• Add windows or more exit doors, if desired

• Set up the necessary wiring

• Add rough-in plumbing by digging out the concrete where needed

• Add a sewer ejector pump to raise sewage to gravity-feed the main sewer pipe, if needed, and then pour new concrete

• Add rough-in HVAC vents

• Frame the walls and ceilings

• Add insulation and soundproofing materials

• Attach wiring, outlets, and switches to the framing

• Integrate plumbing work in the framing

• Hang and finish drywall on the walls

• Add the flooring

• Add plumbing fixtures

• Complete the drywall ceiling or drop ceiling

• Add lighting

• Paint the walls and ceiling

• Install doors

• Install molding and trim

Bathroom Basement Renovation Checklist

Adding a bathroom to a basement space can make it far more livable. However, it’s difficult to do this work yourself, especially if you don’t have any rough-ins for plumbing in the area where you want to add the bathroom. To lift sewage to your main sewer line from the basement, you will likely need to dig out the concrete and bury new lines and a pump. The bathroom basement renovation checklist includes:

• Wire the area for outlets, an exhaust fan, and lights

• Dig out the concrete floor to add plumbing or sewer lines, if needed

• Add rough-in plumbing, including water supply lines and drains where needed

• Add a sewer ejector pump to raise sewage to gravity-feed the main sewer pipe, if needed

• Add an exterior exhaust vent pipe

• After a plumbing inspection, pour new concrete to bury the lines

• Add HVAC ducts

• Frame the walls and ceiling

• Add insulation

• Attach outlets, lights, and switches to the framing

• Run plumbing through the framing

• Hang and finish drywall on the walls

• Add the flooring

• Add and test the plumbing fixtures

• Complete the drywall ceiling or drop ceiling

• Add overhead or wall lighting

• Paint the walls and ceiling

• Install doors, molding, and trim

Bedroom Basement Renovation Checklist

If you want to add a bedroom as part of a basement renovation, you’ll either be finishing an unfinished area or renovating an area that currently serves another purpose. Either way, the basement renovation checklist for adding a bedroom includes:

• Add an egress window for a fire escape

• Add wiring to the area for outlets and lighting

• Add HVAC ducts and vents

• Frame the walls and ceiling

• Add insulation 

• Add soundproofing materials

• Attach outlets and light switches to the framing

• Hang and finish drywall on the walls

• Add the desired flooring

• Complete the drywall ceiling or drop ceiling

• Add overhead lighting

• Paint the walls and ceiling

• Install doors, molding, and trim

How Much Does It Cost to Hire a Basement Renovation Professional?

Whether you have an unfinished or partially finished basement, the cost to add living space in this area can be significant. Even a simple basement remodeling cost can range from about $12,000 to $35,000.

Some of that cost relates to hiring local basement remodeling professionals to do the work. You can expect general contractor and labor costs for renovating a basement to be about 20% of the total cost. If you don’t DIY the work, some of the licensed professionals you may need to hire to complete your basement renovation checklist include:

• General contractor

• Electrician

• Plumber

• Foundation repair

• Drywall installer

• Framer

• Flooring installer

• Painter

• HVAC technician

• Insulation installer

DIY vs. Hiring a Pro

If you can install a few items for your basement renovation yourself, you’ll save some money. However, some cities require you to use licensed professionals to do this kind of project, especially electrical and plumbing work. You should only do DIY work that you have the skill and equipment to do successfully. If you’re unsure about how to frame a wall or the steps to mud and tape drywall, hiring a professional is the better idea.

Making an error while doing DIY work in a living space like this could put your family’s health at risk. Financial penalties for doing unpermitted work can be expensive, depending on your local or regional laws. After doing unpermitted work, you may experience trouble when trying to sell the house later. You could be the defendant in a lawsuit if the unpermitted work caused injuries or property loss to the new homeowner. Hiring a pro and obtaining the proper permits is the best option.