Crawl Spaces Explained: Everything You Need To Know

When you’re in the midst of the home buying process, it’s important to consider each unique feature of a home to decide whether it’s right for you. One feature of some homes that you may have encountered is a crawl space, which serves as a buffer under your home and can provide additional storage and accessibility.

Crawl spaces can have some benefits in a home, but they also bring some downsides. Read this article before buying a home with a crawl space to learn everything you need to know.

What Is A Crawl Space?

A crawl space is an unfinished, narrow area beneath a home’s first floor that can serve as a less expensive alternative to a basement and a barrier between the residence and the ground. It houses systems such as ventilation, ductwork, electrical wiring and portions of the heating and cooling systems. Crawl spaces must be kept in optimal condition to reduce issues within the home.

How To Use A Crawl Space

In most cases, crawl spaces are just a few feet high. As the name suggests, they’re often just tall enough for someone to crawl through them. Because of this, they aren’t used as living spaces. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have a purpose at all.

In many cases, a crawl space is used in many of the same ways a basement would be. First, many homeowners choose to use their crawl spaces as additional storage.

But crawl spaces can also have even more functional uses. In many cases, a crawl space can house ventilation, ductwork and electrical wiring. And if the space is large enough, it could even be home to an HVAC system.

Buying A House With A Crawl Space

When you buy a home, you may not think much about what’s under the floorboards. But if you’re becoming a homeowner, it’s important to know the ins and outs of your new house. And if you happen to buy a home with a crawl space, there are some things you’ll need to know.

Getting Your Crawl Space Inspected

A home inspection is an important part of the home buying process that allows potential buyers to learn about the house and find out what they’re getting themselves into.

If you aren’t sure the home you’re buying has a crawl space, you’ll find out at the inspection. And it’s important that if there is a crawl space, the inspector pays special attention to it.

While it’s not always the case, crawl spaces can create a whole set of problems for a home. They often have moisture issues, especially if they aren’t properly ventilated or dehumidified. And problems with your crawl space can create issues for your entire home, including your air quality.

If your home inspector does find problems with the crawl space, you’ll have a few options. You might decide to opt out of buying the home altogether, but there are also repairs that can help you fix the current problems and prevent future ones.

Does A Crawl Space Affect A Home’s Value?

A crawl space is just one thing that can affect the value of a home, and it can do so in a couple of different ways.

First, the crawl space itself doesn’t necessarily increase or decrease the value of your home. However, the quality of the crawl space absolutely can. If your crawl space is damaged or has moisture issues, it can decrease the value of the home. Prospective buyers are unlikely to want to deal with such a problem.

On the other hand, there are changes you can make to improve your home’s value. Crawl space encapsulation – which is a process of sealing it to remove moisture – can improve the value of your home by maintaining the integrity of your crawl space and preventing future problems.

Whether a crawl space affects a home’s value also depends on where you live. If you live in an area where most homes have basements, you may have trouble selling one with only a crawl space.

Pros And Cons Of Crawl Spaces

Having a crawl space in your home can have some benefits, but it can also come with some downsides.

Pros Of Buying A House With A Crawl Space

There could be several benefits to buying a home with a crawl space. Here are a few to consider:

• Affordability: One of the primary reasons home builders may opt for crawl spaces over basements is their price tags. While a basement can cost you up to (or even more than) $100,000, a crawl space is likely to cost $25,000 or less.
• Comfort: A crawl space can make your home more comfortable than if you simply had a concrete slab foundation. A crawl space is likely to be insulated and vented, which in turn, makes the rest of the home more comfortable.
• Accessibility: For homes without basements, a crawl space provides access to features of your home like plumbing, wiring, HVAC systems and more for repairs.
• Storage: As long as you have a quality crawl space, you can use it as additional storage space in your home. Just make sure that if there’s little moisture control in your crawl space, you be careful of what you store there.

Cons Of Buying A House With A Crawl Space

While buying or building a home with a crawl space has some advantages, it also has some downsides to consider:

• Moisture: One of the biggest problems with crawl spaces is the ability for moisture to get in and serve as a breeding ground for mold and other problems. And if they’re severe enough, these problems can affect the air quality and integrity of your entire home.
• Energy cost: Your energy costs may be higher with a crawl space versus a concrete slab foundation. After all, it’s additional space that you must pay to heat and cool.
• Accessibility: We did mention accessibility as an advantage of crawl spaces, but it can also be a disadvantage. Crawl spaces aren’t as accessible as basements and someone with mobility issues is unlikely to be able to access one.
• Resale value: As we mentioned, a crawl space can impact your home’s resale value, especially if most homes in your area have basements instead. Unfortunately, this isn’t a problem you can easily fix after the fact.

Issues That May Arise With A Home’s Crawl Space

We’ve briefly touched on some of the problems that can arise in a home with a crawl space, but we’ll use this section to dive a bit further into those problems.

Moisture And Water Damage

The biggest issue that can arise from a crawl space is moisture and water damage. It can be challenging dealing with the moisture levels in a crawl space. As moisture builds in the crawl space, it can become a breeding ground for some issues that include:

• Mold and mildew
• Wood rot
• Structural damage
• Termites and other insects
• Allergies
• Poor air quality

If the crawl space in your home isn’t properly removed of moisture, it doesn’t just affect the crawl space – it can affect your entire home. The air from your crawl space is circulated throughout your entire home through the vents. If excess moisture has caused reduced air quality in your crawl space, your family will ultimately breathe it in. The good news is a dehumidifier can help improve your home’s air quality, prevent pests and increase the structural integrity of your home.

Maintenance And Repairs

First, like other home features, the addition of a crawl space in your home can necessitate additional maintenance and repairs. Proper maintenance is especially important to avoid the maintenance issues we previously mentioned.

First, even if you had your crawl space checked out during your home inspection, you may want to have ongoing inspections to monitor the integrity of the space. And if you find any cracks in the foundation walls or other vulnerabilities, it’s important to have them repaired.

In many cases, you may also want to – or need to – encapsulate your crawl space. Crawl space encapsulation is the process of sealing the area and creating a buffer between the crawl space, the ground below and the floor above. It can go a long way in protecting your crawl space – and, therefore, the rest of your home.

Unfortunately, crawl space encapsulation can have a large price tag. The costs can range from roughly $1,500 to $15,000, with the average being about $5,500.

The Bottom Line

As you can see, there are some things you’ll need to consider before buying a home with a crawl space, including the buildup of excess moisture. But crawl spaces can also provide several benefits, especially if your home doesn’t have a basement.

If you’re considering buying a home, it’s never too early to start planning. Start the process today and begin your search for your dream.