ᐅ Building with or without a basement in southern Germany – experiences?

Created on: 14 May 2019 17:24
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Camille1984
Even though I am still looking for a plot of land, I am already thinking about the house.

In the south of Germany (Baden-Württemberg), it is quite common to build houses with basements, and my family also owns homes with basements.

However, I have always hated basements. As a child, I disliked having to go down to the basement to get something—the stairs, the darkness, and so on. Now, in my rented apartment, we have a shared laundry room in the basement. I hate it! If the washing machine were in the bathroom, I would probably prefer doing laundry.

I am fairly certain I don’t want a basement—also for financial reasons. But of course, everyone has their opinion. In an initial design plan, I included a utility and storage room of almost 10m² (100 square feet), an office of 15m² (160 square feet), a laundry room on the upper floor of just under 10m² (100 square feet) with a sloped ceiling, and a storage room behind a garage. When I think about the things currently stored in the rented basement, everything fits into these planned rooms, and the rest is basically junk…

So my question is for experienced home builders without basements in southern Germany: Do you miss anything? Are you concerned about potential resale value? What are your thoughts?

Thank you!
rick201814 May 2019 20:44
If the plot is flat, build without a basement.
You are building the house for yourself, not for others.
No matter what is traditional, it must fit your preferences, lifestyle, and budget.
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tumaa
14 May 2019 20:55
rick2018 schrieb:

If the plot is flat, build without a basement.
You are building the house for yourself, not for others.
No matter what is traditional, it must fit your preferences, lifestyle, and budget.

I completely agree.........I also don’t understand when some people here say the façade has to look a certain way because that’s what’s common in the area.

My parents moved in with my brother, and it felt like 80% of the basement was just junk....the remaining 20% could have easily been stored in a shed and/or garage.
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haydee
14 May 2019 21:03
Then build without a basement and, on a slope, include a lower ground floor with living spaces.

Here, the traditional basement is uncommon. Shelves full of preserved goods, oil tanks, and the like are no longer present.

By the way, the really old houses here also did not have basements below ground level. The soil is too rocky for pickaxes and shovels.
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Tego12
14 May 2019 21:23
I also don’t like basements; they are simply unnecessary stairs that I want to avoid. When land prices are very high and the lot size is consequently very small, a basement makes sense, but otherwise... even hobbies are better suited above ground since those rooms are simply the most pleasant.
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tumaa
14 May 2019 21:34
In my opinion, the worst are guest rooms in the basement.
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Zaba12
14 May 2019 21:36
tumaa schrieb:

In my opinion, the worst thing is having guest rooms in the basement
Why is that? If I have guests three times a year, it’s exactly the right use in terms of price/performance.

I’m not going to pay €33,000 for three overnight stays above ground.