I recently bought a house with a partially finished basement. Right now, it has brown asbestos floor tiles in two main rooms and just concrete in a third room that holds the laundry and utilities. I'm not planning to deal with the asbestos tiles, but I'm thinking about making the basement feel more livable to build some equity. The basement is almost 900 sq ft but I would only cover about 2/3 of that. I found some random carpet squares from Flor that cost $0.99 each, and for under $500 plus some carpet tape, I could cover the main areas. We live in Minnesota and haven't had any water issues, and the basement stays cool and dry. My concern is whether using carpet squares could hurt our chances of increasing equity in the home. I'm considering staging one room as a den and another as an office.
5 Answers
Consider using peel & stick nylon tiles instead; they’re durable and won’t mold or rot. Just be sure to apply a primer over the asbestos tiles first. If you decide to eventually remove the carpet squares for something better, a self-leveling concrete could be a good option to consider later on.
Be cautious about the type of backing on the carpet squares. Test a piece of poly plastic first to check for moisture accumulation. If your basement has vapor issues, it could lead to mold underneath the tiles. I'd only use carpet if you're okay with treating it as a temporary fix without real equity value.
Great tip! I'll definitely try out that test first.
While adding carpet won't significantly raise your home value, renovating your basement might still help a bit. It could make it more appealing, but I wouldn’t count on buyers valuing the carpet squares positively.
Definitely planning on more improvements too, like upgrading the lighting and ceiling!
Honestly, I wouldn't put carpet in a basement at all. It just seems like a bad idea.
I wouldn’t recommend using carpet squares if your main goal is to build equity. Potential buyers might not like them, and you could end up wasting money. If you're going to use the space yourself, do it for that reason, not for resale.
Fair point!
Thanks for the advice on the primer! I don't really want to deal with self-leveler right now, though.