What is included when calculating square footage of a house?
Any space inside a home that has walls, a floor, a ceiling and heat are usually counted toward the overall square footage. However, if there are closets that don't meet the requirements, like in an unheated, unfinished basement, they probably would not be counted.
A garage does not count as square footage of a house because it's considered an unfinished space. This is similar to how attics and basement are treated. When you calculate a homes square footage, what that means is the amount of living space it has. Not unfinished space.
Unfinished areas, screened or open patios, vaulted rooms, and airspaces are not factored into a home's square footage. Additionally, any space that requires passing through an unfinished area – such as a pool house, storage area, or guest house will not be factored into the home's square footage.
Cost: When talking about cost per square foot, we're talking about the hard construction cost, which is the cost from the builder. Included in this cost are material and labor costs and the builder's overhead and profit.
Garage space is not included in square footage, and many standards do not count basements (even if they're finished) in overall square footage. Either way, make sure to measure the basement's square footage for your records — you can still include it in any future property listings.
If a garage has been renovated to become an extra room in a house or a secondary dwelling unit similar to a guest house, it is a legal living unit. However, your typical garage is just legally seen as an unfinished space similar to a shed.
In general, areas like staircases and closets count as finished square footage. Spaces like garages, three-season porches and unfinished basements or attics are not included in the square footage of a house.
What's included in a home's square footage? Main living spaces make up the bulk of your home's square footage, including the kitchen, the living room, the dining room, bedrooms, and bathrooms. Stairways and hallways are also included, although these spaces are not as easy to measure as square rooms.
A porch is a great way to add livable square footage to your home. Though screened porches are typically not included in the appraised square footage of your home, they do add value.
When room sizes are used, closets and hallways are not included. But if the square footage is determined by measuring the perimeter of the apartment, that will include closets, hallways and unusable dead space taken up by interior walls.