Basement Homes

Basements are rare in Arizona. This corner of the Valley is the exception.

If you are moving from the Midwest, the Northeast, or Colorado, a basement is probably on your list, and most Arizona agents will tell you to let it go. In South Tempe and South Chandler, you do not have to. Over the past decade, roughly one in four luxury sales across these two areas had a basement. In South Tempe alone, it is closer to half.

Why they are scarce here is the soil, not the climate. Much of the Valley sits on caliche, a layer of hardened calcium carbonate that digs like concrete. Builders also never need a deep footing, because there is no frost line to get below. In a cold state you are already four feet down, so a basement is a small step further. Here it is an expensive decision made on purpose, which is why whole subdivisions went up without one and the homes that have one cluster in a few places.

What you get is the square footage of a two-story house with the look and feel of a single level. The lower floor stays cool in July on a fraction of the cooling load upstairs. It works as a theater, a gym, a wine room, an in-law suite, or the place the teenagers go. Many of the best examples around here are single-story homes with a full finished lower level, a combination most of the Valley cannot offer at any price.

The ones that exist are worth knowing about early. Basement homes do not come up often, and the buyers who want one usually know it before they start looking. Tell me it is on your list and I will watch for it, including in neighborhoods like Oakwood Hills and Stellar Airpark Estates where they show up more than you would expect.