18 Ways to Turn Unused Space Into the Rooms You Need

In the quest for extra square footage, a dry, unfinished basement is a holy grail. For the cost of some finish work and mechanicals upgrades, you can get a whole new room, sometimes two or three.

For years Karen Berkemeyer used her below-grade space as a laundry room. But the desire for what her home lacked--an informal space for family lounging and TV viewing--caused her to take a second look. "We never had one space where we could all gather and watch a movie," says Berkemeyer.

So the basement was transformed into just that, and during the process upgrades were made to the laundry room and storage closet, and a full bath was added, allowing the space to double as a guest suite.

See more of this beautiful before and after in From Raw Basement to Family Room.