QUICK ANSWER
Basement Remodeling Co. remodels and finishes basements across metro Atlanta through one vetted local contractor. A typical full finish runs $45,000 to $80,000. Book a free on-site estimate and get a written, itemised quote.
What a full finish looks like
Before
AfterExample of a full basement finish. Your contractor shows you photos of their own local projects at the estimate.
Before you start
Many metro Atlanta homes sit on sloped lots, so the basement often has a walkout wall. That allows French doors, full-size windows and legal bedrooms.
Georgia clay holds water against foundation walls. Your contractor checks for moisture and fixes drainage before any framing goes up.
The City of Atlanta, each county and cities like Marietta and Roswell run their own building departments. Your contractor pulls the right permit.
Remodeling guide
A remodel reworks a basement that someone already finished. Many Atlanta basements have old paneling, dropped tile ceilings and framing from past decades that no longer fit how the family lives.
Common changes include opening small rooms into one living area, adding a bathroom or bar and turning a spare room into a legal bedroom. Most remodels also replace worn carpet with a flooring that handles damp concrete.
Labor is the biggest cost, often 50 to 60 percent of the total, according to one Atlanta design-build firm's 2026 cost guide. Electricians, plumbers, HVAC installers, framers and drywall crews all work on the same job.
Among add-ons, the bathroom costs the most. That firm prices a half bath with an existing rough-in at $6,000 to $12,000. A full bath with a tiled shower runs $12,000 to $25,000. Breaking the slab to run new drain lines adds $2,500 to $6,000.
Your contractor opens enough of the old work to check it, then permits the new job. Hidden wiring, missing insulation or a bedroom with no escape window must come up to code.
The same firm prices demolition of a partly finished basement at $1,500 to $5,000, depending on what comes out. Budget for it if your walls hide work nobody can vouch for.
Yes, most interior walls in a basement can move. A load-bearing wall needs an engineer and a beam to carry the load instead.
The same firm prices a load-bearing wall removal at $4,000 to $12,000 with the beam, posts and engineer's letter. Each new wall you add brings framing, drywall, trim and often a new circuit.
Luxury vinyl plank is the most common choice in Atlanta basements because its core is waterproof. The firm's 2026 installed prices:
Most remodels extend the home's ducts or add a separate unit. The firm prices new supply and return runs at $2,000 to $6,000.
Georgia basements stay cool on their own. The bigger job is removing moisture and moving air, which homeowners often leave out of the budget.
The Office of Buildings Residential Permits Division handles basement build-outs and finishes. Applications go in online through Accela Citizen Access.
The minimum permit costs $150 plus a $25 technology fee. The city's ATL Permit Navigator shows which permits a project needs and what they cost.
Since June 25, 2025, any project that may affect trees needs a meeting with the city's arborist staff before the permit application. Digging for a window well or a walkout patio can trigger it.
Yes, if the new bedroom gets its own emergency escape opening. The 2024 code requires one in every new sleeping room created in an existing basement.
A walkout wall can use a side-hinged or sliding door as the escape opening. Otherwise the window must meet these sizes:
Sources: One Atlanta design-build firm's 2026 cost guide (September 2026) · City of Atlanta Office of Buildings, residential permits (ATL311) (September 2026) · ICC, 2024 International Residential Code, chapter 3 (September 2026)
What is included
Turn bare concrete into warm living space with framing, insulation, drywall, power and flooring.
Basement finishing
Add a full or half bath downstairs, with the drain, vent and pump work below-grade plumbing needs.
Basement bathrooms
Build a wet bar or kitchenette with a sink, fridge space, cabinets and lighting for hosting downstairs.
Basement bars
Build a dark, quiet media room with prewired sound, a screen wall, dimmable lights and sound control.
Basement home theaters
Create an in-law suite or apartment with a bedroom, bath, kitchenette and egress built to local code.
Basement apartments
Stop water and dampness with drains, sump pumps, crack repair and grading before you finish the space.
Basement waterproofingBook your free Atlanta estimate
Thirty seconds online. One local contractor calls you back.
The process
Your Atlanta contractor calls to ask about your basement and book a visit.
They measure up, check moisture and ceiling height, and talk through layouts.
Every line priced in writing. Nothing starts until you sign.
They pull permits, build to code and book each inspection.
Atlanta pricing
$45K to $80K
Typical full finish, metro Atlanta. Source: one atlanta design-build firm's published range, checked September 2026.
Read the Atlanta cost guideFit check
Near Atlanta
Same contractor, local permit office. Pick your city.
Related pages
Guides
Questions
Straight answers. Ask your contractor anything else at the free estimate.
Most full finishes in metro Atlanta land between $45,000 and $80,000 on one local design-build firm's figures. A second bathroom, a bar or an egress bedroom pushes a job toward the top.
The same firm puts most Atlanta projects at $35 to $70 per square foot for a standard finish. High-end work runs $70 to $100 or more per square foot.
Yes. Remodeling a basement into living space needs a building permit, and trade permits cover the wiring and plumbing.
The building department can stop the work and make you open walls for inspection. Unpermitted space can also stall a sale when the buyer's inspector finds it.
Often yes. The 2024 code allows 6 feet 8 inches for living space in an existing basement, with beams and ducts down to 6 feet 4 inches.
A remodel can include drainage or sealing, but the moisture work comes first. Your contractor checks walls and floor at the estimate and prices any fix on its own line.
Free on-site estimate
What happens next