Basement Remodeling Contractors in Portland, OR
Typical range: $25,000 – $55,000 Final price depends on scope — your free estimate is itemized in writing.
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Basement Remodel Cost in Portland, OR
Basement finishing is priced per square foot, which is why two quotes for “the basement” can be thousands apart — they’re often not finishing the same amount of it.
For a typical 800 square foot Portland basement, a basic finish — framing, insulation, drywall, flooring, lighting, one open living space — runs about $20,000 to $32,000. Add a full bathroom, a wet bar or a bedroom with proper egress and you’re at $32,000 to $52,000. A high-end suite with a separate entrance, kitchenette and rental-ready finishes runs $52,000 and up.
Two things sit outside those numbers and get quoted separately, because they depend entirely on what we find: moisture and drainage work, and egress window installation where none exists. We price both before starting, never after.
Full breakdown in our Portland basement finishing cost guide.
- Basic finish: $25–$40 / sq ft
- Mid-range with bathroom: $40–$65 / sq ft
- High-end suite: $65–$100+ / sq ft
Keeping a Portland Basement Dry — Before Anything Else
This is the part that decides whether a finished basement is an asset or an expensive mistake. Portland gets over 150 days of rain a year, the water table sits high across most of the east side, and a basement that’s been damp but unfinished for forty years will happily keep being damp behind new drywall.
Before we frame a single wall we find out where the water is coming from. That means checking the grade and downspout discharge outside, looking for efflorescence and staining on the foundation, testing humidity, and in some houses running a hose test. Depending on what we find, the fix is exterior drainage and regrading, an interior perimeter drain to a sump, crack injection, a vapor barrier on the slab, or some combination.
We also recommend radon testing before finishing. Parts of the Portland metro sit in elevated radon zones, and mitigation is far cheaper to install while the slab is still exposed than after the floor goes down.
If a basement can’t be made dry, we’ll tell you that before you spend money on finishes. It’s a short conversation and it has saved our clients more money than anything else we do.
Basement Remodel: Flooring, Framing & Drywall
We design and finish basements end to end — moisture control, framing, egress windows, electrical, plumbing, flooring and finishes — and we deal with what Portland basements actually throw at you before any of the pretty work starts.
Most basement renovations in Portland run $30,000 to $55,000, or roughly $25 to $100 per square foot depending on whether a bathroom and a separate entrance are in the plan. Full breakdown in our <a href='/blog/basement-finishing-ideas-costs-in-portland-or-2026-zurc-construction'>Portland basement finishing cost guide</a>.
For basements where the slab is dry and level, engineered hardwood is an option too — see our hardwood flooring page for what works below grade and what doesn’t.
Licensed, bonded and insured. Oregon CCB #211998. Free written estimates.
Home Offices, Suites & Rental Units
With Portland's strong remote-work culture, basement offices offer separation and quiet. We also build guest or in-law suites, entertainment rooms with wet bars, and — with the right egress and ceiling height — ADU rental units that can generate $1,000–$2,000/month in Portland's ADU-friendly market.
A basement suite is usually the cheapest square footage you’ll ever add — compare it against building out, in our home additions guide.
Lighting Solutions & Egress Windows
Working With Our Basement Remodeling Contractors
Most homeowners get three bids from Portland basement remodeling contractors and can’t compare them, because basements are the job where the differences hide underground.
Compare us against other basement remodeling contractors in Portland on the same scope. Our basement remodeling estimates are itemized line by line — materials, labor, permits, moisture work — so you can see what each bid actually covers. Most Portland basement remodel estimates we write are returned within three business days of the walkthrough.
We start with the part nobody wants to talk about: where water gets in, what the ceiling height actually measures, whether the existing egress meets code, and what the panel can carry. Then we design the layout around what the space will allow. You get a written estimate that separates moisture work, framing, insulation, electrical, plumbing, egress, flooring, finishes and permits — so you can hold it next to anyone else’s and see who left what out.
If you hire us, you get a start date, a finish date and one phone number. A basic finish is three to four weeks, mid-range four to eight, a full suite eight to twelve. We pull the permits and schedule the inspections.
- Free on-site estimate: Written, itemized, no obligation
- Licensed & insured: Oregon CCB #211998
- Permits and inspections: We handle them
- Typical timeline: 3–12 weeks depending on scope
Basement Remodeling in Beaverton, Portland & the Metro
We finish basements across Portland and the surrounding cities — Beaverton, Gresham, Lake Oswego, Tigard, Hillsboro, Tualatin, Milwaukie, West Linn, Oregon City, Wilsonville and Happy Valley.
Beaverton and the west side are where we do the most basement work. The 1960s and 70s split-levels out there were built with daylight basements that are already half-finished and usually only need moisture work, egress and framing to become real living space. Older Portland houses east of the river are different — lower ceilings, rubble or unreinforced foundations, and more often than not a water problem that has to be solved first.
We’re local. Call (503) 309-5973 and we’ll tell you which one you have.
Our Work
Browse completed Basement Remodeling projects in Portland and surrounding areas. Click any photo to view it full size.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Basement Remodeling in Portland, Oregon.
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Licensed, insured and bonded contractor serving Portland, Beaverton, Gresham, Lake Oswego, Tigard and surrounding Oregon communities.
