I saw an apartment I liked today, scoped out the neighborhood, and was planning on putting in my application tomorrow morning. However, when I mentioned to my friend that it’s a basement apartment, his response was “watch out for moisture problems.” I did some searching and found that a lot of basement apartment dwellers have problems with mold, mildew, and bugs.
What I’m wondering: does this apply to any apartment below street level, or apartments that are literally surrounded by earth? Here’s a look at the front windows; they’re full-height, but the floor of the apartment is 3 or 4 feet below street level.
Is there anything I should specifically ask the landlord regarding this? The apartment is being gut renovated, if that makes any difference.
When I was in university, I rented a one bedroom basement apartment. It was very similar to the pics you linked to - full sized windows at street level, with the floor of the apartment about four feet under ground level. It was an older building but had been redone inside. I had nothing but problems. It was always damp and difficult to ventilate. It had kind of a musty smell. Despite my moderately fastidious cleaning habits, at one point I had a black, mildewy moldy substance growing up my bedroom wall from the floor to about a foot from the ceiling. Despite constant cleaning with bleach, the mold would always return.
I’m not suggesting that all basement apartments would have this issue, but I would avoid a basement apartment if I had an alternative.
I lived in one and didn’t have moisture problems. This was in Minnesota, so cold much of the year. Also, it was heated by radiators that kept the air extremely, even uncomfortably dry.
If you can see a similar unit before renovations start, that should give you a chance to ID moisture damage. That would be the downside of a newly renovated unit–any damage would be temporarily covered.
I have had the following problems with basements: Mildew & too much moisture (apartment), spiders (basement of my house). This doesn’t mean all basements suffer from them, and if there’s a water problem, you should be able to smell something. You could check with the landlord. Look for wet spots, or for stains from wet stuff. Be suspicious if there’s a strong odor that might be masking wet/mildew smells.
Basements in my experience tend to be warmer in cold weather and cooler in warmer weather, so that’s a plus.
From the picture, it looks more like what’s called a “garden level” around here, rather than a deeper basement.
One word of advice. If you put a waterbed on the floor, you will need a pump to get the water out when you move, unless it’s right by a drain.
I’ve seen some very pleasant basement apartments. These are usually daylight basements. But is it common for less nice basements to have moisture or mold problems. I lived in one miserable apartment where every time it rained water would come up from underneath and soak the the carpet. Every time it rained - in Seattle. So I wouldn’t write if off completely but inspect it very carefully before committing and see if you can talk with the previous tenant.
Yeah, hard to say, the place is ripped up from floor to ceiling at the moment, new everything is going in, so there’d be little evidence of water damage even if I looked.
I could roll the dice, but the fact is I’m no longer particularly excited about moving into this place, which is probably a sign I should keep looking.
What you’re talking about is a ground-floor brownstone apartment. I used to live in one in Brooklyn Heights, and the problem wasn’t moisture, but soot from the furnace which was right underneath. I had also lived in a couple of actual basement apartments, and yes there were moisture-related problems . . . including one time when the entire building’s sewage backed up into my bath tub.
I lived in a basement apartment in Westchester County in the 1990s. The thing I disliked the most was that the floor was always cold, because it was carpeting over concrete and I prefer bare feet.
Avoid like the PLAGUE. My basement apartment had been completely redone; new carpet, new appliances., etc. It looked GOOD.
A tenant told me, right after I’d moved in & paid the security deposit & 1st month’s rent, that the building had been completely flooded the year before, and that it had not been properly cleaned up & sanitized. He warned me that toxic mold would show up everywhere.
Needless to say, I got panicky every time it rained.
After just over a year (May 30), a construction company backhoe (uphill from my apt.) dug into a sewer line, clogged it, and RAW SEWAGE backed up into ALL THE BASEMENT APTS (13 units). My tub was filled to the brim; sewage also flowed through cracks in the foundation; my carpets floated in this funky crap; got totally soaked; sewage was above my ankles when I finally fled, after only 15 minutes of frantically trying to save my possessions. Absolute horror.
My renter’s insurance paid me only $1600. RIP-OFF. My life was totally discombobulated for quite some time after that.
It can be fine. I’m in a basement apartment in my brother’s house that I renovated myself. It’s perfectly dry, and the carpeted floor is warm enough (and the heated tile floor in the bathroom is downright toasty!). But my brother was dedicated to the idea that the apartment should be very comfortable. It’s dry because we went to the trouble of installing a “French drain” system around the perimeter of the apartment. That means we cut the concrete floor and dug a trench 18 to 24 inches deep, lines it with gravel and put a perforated plastic tube in the pit. That leads to a sump pump pit with a battery backed system.
In short, ask to see the sump pump pit. If there is no battery system, run. If there is no pit, run quickly.
Keep looking. Mustiness will be the a small problem, then again, you could have sewage flood the place. This happened to the people that lived in the basement apartment below me. Ripe funky sewage stench for me; shit covered floors for them. When I was in a basement apartment, I had a massive leak behind the sink and dishwasher. As quickly as I took care of it, the mold still went to town. Rise above.
I had a garden apartment with the windows above ground and the floor about four feet below (similar to that one, from appearances). One very wet spring, I woke up to water bubbling up through my duct work. Nasty, brackish water. With leaves and twigs. Ewwwww…
I was not aware when I signed the lease, that there were some cracks in the foundation (this was up north, winter freezes and high water table) and once it seeped under the foundation, quickly made the heating ducts into canals. I should have been clued in by the fact that the place had no carpet whatsoever. I never did get the mold problems solved before moving.
Beyond the dampness issue, I’m not sure if you’re a woman or man, but there is also the security issue. Basement/garden apartments can be easier to break into (okay, looked at the image now and the windows seem to be barred but that can be an issue when they are not), and easier for outsiders to peer into (bars don’t help there). There is also the fact that when you look out, you are looking at peoples’ feet all the time, and if it’s a busy sidewalk a lot of movement can block your sunlight, as well as bring in a lot of noise.
I lived in several basement apartments during my poor post-student days. They’re actually not that bad, assuming that you’re okay with low ceilings, some moisture issues, and the occasionally critter. I dealt with those by dating short men, getting a dehumidifier and a vicious mouser slash bug exterminator I named Ariel the Wondercat.
Actually, living in a subterranean apartment is practically a coming-of-age ritual for most Torontonians (Sarah Harmer wrote a song about her basement apartment).
What’s in the picture isn’t a true basement apartment though… around here, we’d call that “ground level”, since there’s usually at least one level directly below it to house all the storage/boilers/heating/etc for the building, which would insulate from the worst of the dampness and critters. They’re actually quite pleasant, since you get proper height ceilings and the windows tend to let in a reasonable amount of light.
MAKE SURE THERE ARE AT LEAST TWO EXITS! If not, what would you do if a fire breaks out in front of your only exit? Could you climb through a window? I don’t think so. Basement apartments are illegal in my town for that very reason. The last fatal fire here killed four people. It was in a basement apartment with one exit.
You might want to check with your city about the legality of basement rentals.
I would ask the landlord what’s under your apartment. In a building like that, I would think it would be the actual basement.
I lived in the ground floor apartment in an NYC brownstone for a few years, I loved it and I wouldn’t have described it as a “basement apartment.” There was a basement under it, so I didn’t have any problems with dampness. They make shades now that let in light, but prevent people from looking in your windows although it is a little odd at first seeing the feet of people go by.
My husband and I bought a garden level condo here in Boston. It’s basically a basement apartment and while it’s a tad more humid than the other floors, it’s not that moist.
We have a small window in our bedroom which is below grade (window has a window well up to the surface); the entire back of the apartment is grade level. That means it’s really quiet and so far I think our heating/cooling bills are going to be a lot less than what we paid in the Midwest.
We do have two exits as that’s a legal requirement in Boston. Plus we have a huge patio (like 450 square feet) which is a big bonus for us.
To make sure my apartment is legal and safe, we dug an exit stairway. This involved digging through Missouri clay. It’s about 12 feet long, and 11 feet deep at it’s deepest point, were we put in a drain into the French drain system. Because it was right next to a wall, we had to dig the whole thing by hand. Me and two other guys with shovels and picks. Hardest work I’ve ever done.
I lived in a “garden level” place. It was fine, much like any other apartment except for the placement of windows. My cat loved it. He could sit in the window and be *just that close *to sitting on the ground outside!
