***Official 2024 Weather Thread***

[aauummm]

Living in the NV mountains, at 7500, life w/o a wood burner is unheard of. We heat house only. Front and back porch - both enclosed, no heat whatsoever. Main house, just over 1000 sq. feet. Wood burner primary heat source, back up via electric baseboard heaters. High electrical bill? $80, during winter months.
Wood cutting permits - $25 (as much as one cuts).
4-6 cords gets us through our long winters (we've had snow, 12 months of the year).
Spent my first 30 years in Iowa. Don't recall anyone with a wood burner, though near everybody had a fireplace (pretty much btu worthless, compared to a wood burner).
Why don't Iowan's have wood burners, or for that matter, pellet stoves?

I installed a fireplace insert into our fireplace in the walkout basement in a previous home in Des Moines. It was a wood burning stove but designed to fit nicely into a large sized fireplace and then finished off. The "basement" was more exposed than not and finished off just like the upstairs first floor.

I got a lot of my wood from a sawmill down on the SE side of DSM. They had a huge pile of left-over cuttings and trimmings. For $10 you could haul off as much as you wanted. I would get hardwood slabs 8-10 foot long and cut them up with a circular saw.

Also I had two huge red oak trees removed and had the tree people cut the trunks up into fireplace length stumps. I would split those myself. Good exercise.

 

[wxman1]

One of the worst parts of the derecho was not only that we lost around 60% of our trees but that pretty much all of them just got ground to mulch.

 

[BCClone]

That included the finished & also heated (lookout) basement. Ranch style home (or rambler depending where you live for what you call it).

Just FYI, you only include the square footage of the space above ground. If there is part of the basement that is above ground level then that is included.

 

[alarson]

Just FYI, you only include the square footage of the space above ground. If there is part of the basement that is above ground level then that is included.

This varies by area.

Here in iowa you're correct. Some cities\states it is included.

 

[BCClone]

This varies by area.

Here in iowa you're correct. Some cities\states it is included.

Not for appraisers, it is above grade; as determined by ANSI. Assessors and Real estate agents may include other things but for appraisals, it is strictly above grade.

 

[RLD4ISU]

Just FYI, you only include the square footage of the space above ground. If there is part of the basement that is above ground level then that is included.

That’s the square footage that was heated/livable. I’m not selling the thing.

 

[KidSilverhair]

One of the worst parts of the derecho was not only that we lost around 60% of our trees but that pretty much all of them just got ground to mulch.

Now you’re bringing up memories of those vast unending piles of mulch along 380 north of town and out along E Avenue by Highway 100

 

[wxman1]

Now you’re bringing up memories of those vast unending piles of mulch along 380 north of town and out along E Avenue by Highway 100

And the one out at Tuma, and the one down along the River where the hotel used to be.

 

[NorthCyd]

Not for appraisers, it is above grade; as determined by ANSI. Assessors and Real estate agents may include other things but for appraisals, it is strictly above grade.

Maybe thats how it is with appraisers, but in just every day conversation you talk about finished square feet, because people spend a lot of time in their basements if it's finished. I could tell you I have a 1700 square foot ranch if only including above grade, but in reality it's over 3000 finished square feet with a family room and 3 bedrooms downstairs. Which one paints a more accurate picture of my living situation?

 

[nrg4isu]

Not for appraisers, it is above grade; as determined by ANSI. Assessors and Real estate agents may include other things but for appraisals, it is strictly above grade.

Where I live, if it's finished, it's counted as square footage. It very much threw me off when I moved out of Iowa.

Is appraisal a banking thing? Because my county taxes me based on an assessment and I buy/sell based off of real estate agent listings... I can't even figure out where the hell I'd look up an appraisal of my property. I can confidently say I've never seen a square footage listed of my house that was not inclusive of all of the finished square feet.

 

[BCClone]

Maybe thats how it is with appraisers, but in just every day conversation you talk about finished square feet, because people spend a lot of time in their basements if it's finished. I could tell you I have a 1700 square foot ranch if only including above grade, but in reality it's over 3000 finished square feet with a family room and 3 bedrooms downstairs. Which one paints a more accurate picture of my living situation?

1700 with a partially finished basement.

 

[BCClone]

Where I live, if it's finished, it's counted as square footage. It very much threw me off when I moved out of Iowa.

Is appraisal a banking thing? Because my county taxes me based on an assessment and I buy/sell based off of real estate agent listings... I can't even figure out where the hell I'd look up an appraisal of my property. I can confidently say I've never seen a square footage listed of my house that was not inclusive of all of the finished square feet.

Most common use of appraisals are for lending, estates, and situations like divorces. In Iowa, appraisers, agents and assessors are supposed to all use above grade. I can not speak for out of state agents or assessors.

 

[nrg4isu]

Most common use of appraisals are for lending, estates, and situations like divorces. In Iowa, appraisers, agents and assessors are supposed to all use above grade. I can not speak for out of state agents or assessors.

Looks like Fannie Mae is leading the charge for the ANSI definition. Still, though, outside of a legal or banking setting, it makes zero sense to use that terminology. My house is just under 4,000 sq ft. ~3,700 finished. Ranch with a basement. So in appraisal terms it must be right around 2,000 sq ft. I've never seen a document with that number on it anywhere though. And for the purposes of this conversation its even more inaccurate. This would be more about heated sq ft.

 

[NorthCyd]

Where I live, if it's finished, it's counted as square footage. It very much threw me off when I moved out of Iowa.

Is appraisal a banking thing? Because my county taxes me based on an assessment and I buy/sell based off of real estate agent listings... I can't even figure out where the hell I'd look up an appraisal of my property. I can confidently say I've never seen a square footage listed of my house that was not inclusive of all of the finished square feet.

It may change by county, but they list finished basement area on the assessor page in Polk County. Pretty sure appraisals are done by banks usually for financing purposes, and I've never had one done so I can't say for sure on that. It's weird that @BCClone thinks that's the only standard that should apply in all areas of real-estate, but that's his perogative I guess.

 

[nrg4isu]

It may change by county, but they list finished basement area on the assessor page in Polk County. Pretty sure appraisals are done by banks usually for financing purposes, and I've never had one done so I can't say for sure on that. It's weird that @BCClone thinks that's the only standard that should apply in all areas of real-estate, but that's his prerogative I guess.

I do think that in some cases, in Iowa specifically, the "ground floor only" approach was/is more common. I remember when I moved away that I was confused how/when square footage was counted.

Now I'm conditioned for the opposite. If it's finished it counts for everything I've seen around here.

 

[BCClone]

I do think that in some cases, in Iowa specifically, the "ground floor only" approach was/is more common. I remember when I moved away that I was confused how/when square footage was counted.

Now I'm conditioned for the opposite. If it's finished it counts for everything I've seen around here.

You can call it however you like. My last question is, when you build a house, what do you tell the builder? Every one I've built or helped with has been above grade and with or without basement and then if we are going to finish the basement or not.

 

[NorthCyd]

I do think that in some cases, in Iowa specifically, the "ground floor only" approach was/is more common. I remember when I moved away that I was confused how/when square footage was counted.

Now I'm conditioned for the opposite. If it's finished it counts for everything I've seen around here.

If you go home shopping you will see them list the square footage of the home in the title and usually that only includes above grade, but in the property description they always list finish square footage if the basement is finished. Of course they would, because they want to sell the home and that info is important to a lot of people.

 

[MeanDean]

Not that it affects anyone else, but we have tornado warnings here right now. St. Lucie Co./Martin Co. Florida

Very dark, lightning and rain.

 

[nfrine]

Came looking for the weather thread....

 

[Clonehomer]

Came looking for the weather thread....

This is CF. Titles often have little to do with the conversation of the thread. Just go with it.