Ultimate backyard! Much more doable in Florida. ;-)

For sure...and I imagine a basement is much more attractive in places where you have three months covered in snow too! ha!

in florida, a finished basement would be a pond.

it usually depends where you live but i want both in my new house. :)

We love using our backyard.

Would love the basement room when you live in Michigan

I live in Erie, PA, so need I say anymore? Our winters are terrible, and very long.... So, altho' I'd love a beautiful yard, too, if I had to choose one, it would be the basement. My gr-grandson loves to play down there with my neighbor's kids, when he is here! I'd love it, too, for crafting and such.... even for a play area for adults with a pool table and shuffle board table! It would be wonderful for the holidays, too!

I'm an outdoorsy type, love gardening, so naturally a big backyard appeals to me. I lived in Minnesota for a while, and there I would probably go with the basement.

Definitely outdoor, I usually cant swim in my basement :)

Although I live in a climate with really only 2 months of summer (Manitoba, Canada) I find that people here really cherish the summer months and take full advantage of them so I would go with an awesome backyard!! 100%

I've lived in a house that had a basement that opened to a view of the stream and forest through a standard sizes sliding glass patio door. I made it my studio and children's play room. The incline of the hill side was so steep that there wasn't a possibility of a yard. My children were toddlers and young elementary at the time so I wanted them with me all of the time and the room was large enough to accommodate all the elements of art, sewing, and toys. They were toddlers and I was starting my own business in soft sculpture designs. It pleasant during the summer. We saw various wildlife which was a thrill especially for the children. But the winter was quite depressing.

On the other hand, having a backyard was never a bad idea. I could hang my clothes out to dry. I could iron out side, even sew outside once I realized I could set up my machine on a table under the tree or eaves. This, in turn, led me to try my hand at gardening for the first time. The results were such that we wanted to be outside more than inside. So the back yard, when thoughtfully done, is the definite winner in my book.

No contest! The backyard is the winner for sure. Even when I lived in a great apartment in New York City, the thing I craved was an outdoor space. It changes the way you live and view your world. It seems most basements don't seem to really get used that much and generally don't have windows for natural light. So happy we have a wonderful backyard now and with four seasons it's always changing--pale green of spring to bright summer colors to fall's kaleidoscope to sculptural winter white...

I agree that it all depends on where you live. My backyard has a lovely deck, a blue stone
patio, a fish pond with Koi and expansive lawn leading to a hartru tennis court but it is
useful for only half the year. We also have a large basement playroom with a wood
burning fireplace that we are in the process of redoing with a pool table. Granted, it has
small windows but I am hoping that it becomes a popular space during the long New England winter!!

I love both but spend time outdoors whenever I can. Right now I only really use my basement to do laundry. And even then, I bring it to my backyard to dry on a clothesline whenever the weather let's me. I love having a yard & watching foxes, bear & deer from my porch. Nature is beautiful. Can't get enough of it. Yet I do yearn for a nicer venue while I do my wash.

We are lucky enough to currently have both. We live in north central IL and our spaces are not nearly as grand as these but are nice in the scale of our home and community. Our back yard is the local country club. It is beautiful and even better because we don't have to deal with the lawn care! Our finished basement is cozy with a huge stone fireplace and comfy leather furniture. Best of both worlds!

I agree with many of the comments above. Depending upon your location. We are approaching the fall and winter season so we will be indoors much more. So I voted for the basement. But I do enjoy the outdoors in warmer weather too and appreciate beautiful outdoor appeal as well. This was a difficult choice for me.

One can enjoy a backyard two ways - while in it and as scenery seen through windows. A basement can only be enjoyed one way.

If I could have a great backyard like this, it would make me feel like I am on vacation all 3 short months of Canadian summer. Having my own pool would be beyond awesome!

Beautiful backyards just ROCK!! A great place to cook, socialize, watch the game, drink a beer, relax. No better place to have a great time.

Fantastic!!!!

I'm for the basement even if I didn't live in the mid-west. Mosquitos, for one. We have what I refer to as "the breeder pond" behind the house that is not on our property. Little we can do that really works. There is constant work to upkeep the grounds. Plants die, fail to thrive, require continual attention and expense to fertilize, debug, replace, water. Removal of trees or pruning is costly as is lawn plugging, slicing, seeding, etc. Weather takes it's toll on the landscape, decks, outdoor furniture, etc. Lotta work, expense, upkeep. I'm into finishing my daylight basement w/fireplace, but still one more bathroom to go. I'm sure where one lives, snow and ice winters here, helps make the decision too.

While redoing the basement is on the list some time, having great outdoor space looks better (to the neighbours too) and would get a lot more use!

Oh yeah, backyard wins hands down! I've never been a fan of making a basement a big living space--I think of it as a place for storing things. But, I do understand if space upstairs is limited, going down into the basement is a good idea. For me, it must have some natural light, be bright and cheery or I'd feel like I was in a bear's den.

I like them both but feel the pool and outdoor area would be better for your health. This is assuming you live in a hospitable climate. The basement would be a great place to send high school kids with friends and the outdoor place seems more like adults relaxing.

Here in So Cal, basements are very rarely seen - maybe due to earthquakes? I picked backyard - except when it rains (which is pretty rare, especially right now during the drought), the weather is such that we can use the backyard year round.

We downsized and purchased a two bedroom bungalow a year ago. Fortunately my husband and I are both handy with great building skills. We finished our basement over the winter and now have an extra bathroom, two guest bedrooms with king-sized beds and walk-in closets and a huge family room. My second main floor bedroom is now my office/work room. This summer we built an extension on our builder's deck put up a pergola and did some serious landscaping. Fortunately we have both the basement and the backyard as we plan on being here for many years. We live in Southern Ontario with at least 6 months to enjoy some nice weather and we are a destination for our family and friends, which is important to us.

Climate and mobility would be considerations for me and family needs. If you can build a walk out basement, then make the outside wall all glass or three full views glass door which are awesome and affordable. Add a 4th if possible. Then as money permits extend roof over doors and create a terrace so you can enjoy inside and out together. If glass wall faces south and you are in the north, you can find potted plants for outside and over winter inside.

I'd opt for backyard.

That being said...some of the photos connected to the polls here lately....wow. Not my cuppa at all.

It's all far too modern, pastel & frankly...ugly. (not necessarily the backyard pic, but I'd never build that huge "room" in my backyard either)

But that's just my opinion.

With Chicago winters ahead, I chose basement. Now, if I ever get to be a snowbird, I would choose backyard because I do love to garden.

Living in a condo only leaves one choice.

We made this decision a couple of years ago. We chose our basement since we live in central PA. I love going down into a nicely finished space that I can use year round.

The first thing we did when bought our house was redo the rec room/my office in the basement. Great space for the kids. This year, 15 years later, we redid the basement outside egress and extended our patio. Found that during holidays no one goes to the rec room, no matter how enticing I make it. We often have family hot dog roasts in the summer and everyone crammed onto our small back patio no matter how muggy or hot, except me because I prefer the air conditioning and bugs love my ankles.

Probably the back yard. Our basement is a combination new and former crawl space that was benched and dug out.

Much rather be outside than in any day!

Both projects sounds great, it depends on whether your family prefers indoors or outdoors, and the number of days the weather is nice enough to be outside. I live in Houston, where there are no basements and it never snows, and people spend lots of time outdoors year round. Many people build outdoor kitchens and gazebos and large covered patios with mounted giant screen televisions. Even folks with average incomes in modest neighborhoods install in-ground pools and spas. Many people entertain mostly outdoors, and leave "party lights" up year round. If you live in the South or on the West Coast, I'd vote for the yard. Anywhere else, probably the basement, for both your enjoyment and resale value.

adtnnr: Thanks for the photos...simply lovely!

I love the openness of that backyard and the continuity from the Family Room to the outdoors. Very nice.

We don't have basements around here. Backyards should be used, but I see a lot of backyards online that are just silly and will not hold up.

Depends on where you live! I grew up in Detroit where basements are prevalent. My dad finished the basement in my parents' house as my brother and I approached our teen years so that we could have a hangout space, which our two younger sisters used also. The last place I lived in Ohio was a beautiful three level townhouse that included a gorgeous finished walk out basement. Since the weather is much more temperate here in NC, I'd now go for the backyard!

adtnnr- Thanks for the beautiful photos. It is a really nice bright space.

Ahh to have the extra indoor room....Basement please!

We live in a three story home built on slab so no basement. Don't miss it, don't want it! I'll pick the backyard any day of the week, month or year!!

Backyard... grow organic veggies.

Santa Barbara CA-backyard of course.

Living in Houston, we have a LOT of outdoor time...and NO basements because they would flood! But, even in another location, I love being outdoors...there is just something about enjoying nature that is singularly wonderful. Nothing else can match it!

backyard is very important to me!

I would love to have both but if I need to choose any of the one among those two then I would like to have a beautiful backyard.

If I lived in tornado country, I would want a basement. Otherwise, back yard, of course!

Since we are based in southern CA, an ultimate outside living space is a must on my wish list. #BeSeenBeSafe

I think it may depend on not only where you live but the stage of your life. When I had children I would have been in heaven to have a basement where they could hang out with their friends until they left home. It would have been an awesome room that grew with them. My children seldom were interested in the backyard. They park yes! The backyard no. Now I have no children at home. I am very interested in my entire yard on about 1/2 acre. Our home sits in back of another house and property. There's a long drive up to our house. It will soon be walled in on all four sides because of our dogs and our desire for privacy. Behind the house is a farmer's field and beyond that is an old growth forest. What I really like about France is that most of the homes have a walled in yard, front and back, and people ring at the gate for entry. This gives the home owners much more property to use as they see fit. So curb appeal become a statement of lots of flowers and creative plantings that is personal to each home.