You need to check the local laws to see what needs to be done for it to be considered a bedroom. There's another post dealing with this topic as well.

I think there are fire code issues as to what you can call a bedroom. (Okay, I'm basing this on an episode of Extreme Makeover Home where they had to dig out around a basement window to put in a fire exit for a basement bedroom, but it makes sense)

So that may impact what you can say for real estate purposes. I'd think that aesthetics are the bigger factor as to how people actually live in the space though.

If it doesn't have an egress window then it isn't a bedroom. Code may also require a ladder system depending on the window design and depth.

What does the bedroom have for windows?

Code where I live is it must have a large window to be considered a bedroom in the basement. Plus it must have a closet in the room to be considered a bedroom. We have a bedroom in the finished basement. Our basement is a daylight basement (double hung window which is mostly above ground).

It is a fire code...but even if you live in an area where it is not fire code, it is extremely foolish to use the basement as a bedroom with no means of immediate egress...as the chances of being trappped in the event of a fire a very high...

That said...
You really need to know what you are doing when you mess with a foundation...personally, I would never bother doing this...as I've known 3 people that had never ending basement water intrusion after altering the foundation for egress...

It does have one double hung window in the bedroom and a closet. There is an exit to the garage from the basement itself.

The other thing you have to consider is ceiling height. In most states you need to have at least 7'8" for it to be considered "habitable living space". Check the local building inspector.

AlsoÂÂan exit to the garage may or may not count as egress...what if that is where the fire started or where it has already spread?
As far as the window is concerned...it needs to be a certain size...and not too high up to climb out...check with either the code inspector or the fire marshal to determine if it meets the requirements.
Last but not least....if the town requires permits, then you should make sure that the sellers have them...including final approvals. That will tell you if it was approved for use as a bedroom...or just as finished space.

Thanks - we have decided that we would go ahead and get an inspection done prior to making an offer - that will answer many questions for us and allow us to make an offer based on information as opposed to conjecture.

Re the window in the basement bedroom - code isn't just that the window itself has to be a certain size. Code states out that the opening of the window when open also has to be a certain size.

Mmelko, inspections are certainly an integral part of the home buying process. But in this case I would do my own due diligence on this issue, since at least some inspectors do not inspect for code violations.

cocooner

A bedroom designation in your basement will be determined by your local zoning regulations.

In general, you must have an egress window of specific dimensions. The window height from the floor can only be x number of inches. The bedroom will also include a closet.

Check your local building codes for the specifics.

Enjoy the journey.

eal51 in western CT

Here's some information about egress window requirements.

Thanks again. I told my agent I wanted this information to be clear so she is calling the Town on Tuesday and pulling the records on this house. It's a fairly new build (actually still a work in progress as the owner is the contractor who had an accident and now he has to unload his own house) - should not be hard to get all the paperwork.

I learn a lot on this forum.

MP

what the heck is a DH?

DH = dear husband

(or, substitute another "d" word as the situation warrants)

One other thing you might check. Depending on your area, the septic might have to be upgraded if you increased the number of bedrooms. In my area, simply having egress and a closet doesnt make a bedroom; you also have to add another 2 lines to your leach fields if the house has a septic system. Also keep in mind the resale value of this type of home. Most people don't want their kids on all different floors of the house and they certainly don't want them in the basement.

Ah, I shall inquire into the septic. I had forgotten the septic tank/number of bedrooms. (I'm new to septic tanks).

We discussed the separation of the bedrooms - two up and two down. The entry to the basement is not your normal basement entry - it's a rather wide nice set of stairs down to another floor - so it's clearly meant to be another part of the house and not just a basement. Yet, having the bedrooms divided by the main floor may become and issue and we are looking into a possible fix when we would sell as there is a ton of room on the second floor. If ever.

It's a rather large home. You could easily set it up like they did, with the younger children up stairs near the master and the older children down stairs. It's actually a nice set up - but not for people with a bunch of small children.

mp

I don't mind bedrooms in the basement if they are extra rooms or designated for guests. But a couple with young children will not find that floorplan appealing and it may limit your future resale value.

If the kids are teenagers, then they would probably love such a set up.

I think you'd be severely limiting your resale value because of the unusual floorplan. I personally wouldn't buy a home like that because my first thought would be that it would be difficult to sell.

Someone coming from Hawaii wouldn't find this odd, although there the BRs are often on the first floor (not basement) and the living space is on the second floor -- where the ocean or other "view" is. This also keeps the BRs cooler.

I will keep that in mind. Our previous house had the master suite on the first floor and the other beds on the second and we loved it. We sold to a family with older children the parents could not wait to get on a floor away from the children. :)

Down South you find a lot of master down and guest/children rooms upstairs.

Regardless, there is still plenty of room on the second floor to enclose and make a third bedroom - but we would only create a third bedroom upstairs when we sold. Will make sure the septic is rated for the correct number of bathrooms and bedrooms before we do that. Hopefully we will be here for many years and not have to worry about all that moving again. I'm kidding myself. :P

The biggest reason we have for buying this house is that it is a very nice house, in a very nice neigborhood, in a low tax area - which is very appealing to us.

MP

Most people don't want their kids on all different floors of the house and they certainly don't want them in the basement.

"Most" people must not have teenagers. ;-)

We have refinished one section of our basement as a "bedroom" for our teenage son. Our house has a master + two upstairs and a small 4th bedroom on the main floor. The basement bedroom has a closet and a sink and a window that looks through the workroom behind it and out those windows. We did not want to go to the expense of creating a full bathroom in the basement, but the sink was easy enough to do and there's a full bath right across from the basement stairs.

The girls used to share a bedroom upstairs and he had the other so that I could keep the main floor as a guest bedroom. (And, also, when I say "go to your room" I generally want it to be as far away as possible... lol). Now that they're older, though, this has been a great arrangement.

Although it's a nice sized room, clearly a bedroom and functions well that way, I would never list it as a 5-bedroom house. (We visited one recently that didn't even have a door to a basement area that they were trying to claim was a bedroom... ).

But it's certainly not something we would have considered for younger kids.

even w/ teenagers, I don't think I'd want them 2 floors away from me. My kids are pretty trustworthy, but still.....I want to be able to know what's going on in the other rooms in my house.

talley_sue, it certainly is a consideration! We did weigh the pros and cons and the pros won, but yeah, I hear ya! We're about to move into a house where all four bedrooms are on the same floor and ulitmately I'll be happier with that. Of course, the teenage boy won't, because now that I will be able to SEE his room every time I walk by, no-way/no-how will it look like it does now. lol

My bigger concern overall has been making sure the carbon mononxide detector is working, but that goes as much for them playing on the playroom side as it does for the bedroom area.