Just realized my brother in Red Deer might be right about finished basements
He came by my place near Red Deer last weekend and said he'd never buy a house with a finished basement again, because he'd rather have the storage and do the work himself than trust some guy's 2015 reno job. I always figured finished meant less work and more value, but then he asked me what I'd actually pay for someone else's shag carpet and cheap paneling. Now I'm second guessing what I even want when I sell. So which side are you on, pay more for a done basement or buy the bare one and save the cash?
We bought a place with a half done basement (studs and a working bathroom, nothing else) and it was the best call for us. We got the storage for the first two years while we figured out the space, then finished it on our own timeline with stuff we actually picked. The flip side is my sister bought a full reno and spent her first winter pulling up soggy carpet and finding mold behind the paneling, so the cheap job can cost more later. Bare bones also lets you spot real problems before they're hidden. I'd take the unfinished one again, no question.