Basement Waterproofing: Stop at Dry or Spend +$6K to Monetize?

Question

I’m working through a decision on a small multifamily and would love a gut check from this group.

We recently purchased the property and the basement has some moisture issues that we’re planning to address regardless. So the baseline investment is already happening to make the space dry and protect the asset long-term.

Where I’m stuck is whether to go a step further.

For about an additional $6K, we could take the basement from “dry but not very usable” to “clean, dry, and functionally usable” (still unfinished, but new slab / leveled surface, better usability overall).

The potential upside would be:

• Adding shared laundry (thinking ~$50–$60/month per tenant as an optional add-on)
• Offering dedicated storage (~$25–$30/month)
• Or bundling both (~$75/month)

A few constraints:

• Current tenants are stable and I don’t want to disrupt them, so this would be positioned as optional upgrades, not baked into rent (at least for now)
• I’m not expecting massive rent upside, but there is some monetization potential
• Longer-term, I could see this being rolled into rent for future tenants

So the decision is essentially:

• Option A: Solve the moisture issue only (purely defensive, no added income)
• Option B: Spend the extra ~$6K to make the space usable and open up some incremental revenue + better tenant experience

For those of you who’ve done similar:

• Have you seen tenants actually pay for basement laundry/storage in this type of setup?
• Does a “clean but unfinished” basement meaningfully change adoption vs. just “dry”?
• Is ~$6K a no-brainer here, or is this where people tend to over-improve relative to the return?

Appreciate any perspectives, especially from folks who have tried to monetize similar upgrades.

Richard F. · Answer

@Bruce Woodruff is spot on with waterproofing from the outside! Any money spent "waterproofing" on the inside (other than correcting faulty plumbing) is a complete waste. Most of the damage is already done...critical elements of concrete or block construction is leaching out of the wall, weakening it for future collapse; wood structural elements are rotting or being attached by wood destroying insects; and mold is thriving out of sight.

Re-contour the grade down and away from the foundation and toward a natural downslope or drainage; redirect downspout discharges away and ensure they are not blocked or restricted; add gutters if there are none; expose your foundation by trenching in order to apply new and proper waterproofing materials.

BUT, think hard about plans for making the space useable. Laundry is a good idea, however as a Multi fam property I would get the equipment from a coin-op (or card-op) vendor. You can either get them on a 5 or 10 year lease, where they maintain the equipment and pay you half of the income. Often, depending on how many people in your building, will pay YOU for some "decorating" expenses to fix up the laundry area. The other alternative is to BUY coin op, but maintenance and repairs is ridiculously expensive on ANY appliances, and when a washer transmission goes out, it is costly. Either way, the vendors or you can calculate actual operating expenses based on the known consumption per cycle, and adjust the vend cost accordingly.

ALSO, with regard to "storage", you are asking for problems. Particularly if your Tenant mix is only average, and your turnovers are usually costly, storage spaces of any size can be filled with dangerous and flammable products; hazardous waste of all types that will cost you to dispose of; and just large accumulations of crap that someone will need to dispose of. They usually hold all the items that people do not want in their living space, and also the last thing they worry about "cleaning" when moving out, especially if that move is in the middle of the night. At a minimum, add the space to your move in and move out checklists to be sure and inspect them at those times. Also establish clear rules for what is and is not allowable. Lastly, inform all Tenants that any personal property left outside of storage, anywhere, will be discarded with no notice.

Michael K Gallagher · Answer

I think you need to go with option B and understand that you may not get any direct monetary gains, the rents may not be sizably increased and certainly not on these current tenants.  Likely the best move to do the work during a turn if you can but regardless the real benefit to taking the basement to usable and more appealing isn't the increased rents, is going to be the intangables, the reduced downtime between tenants, its going to come in the form of a better tenant and higher caliber tenant who is willing to move in because the basement is now nice, so yes do the full thing, but understand the real value is not going to be in the rents, its in the vacancy and overall tenant quality that you'll see the value long term.

Drew Sygit · Answer

You haven't told us how much Option A is?

I like to evaluate based on the percentage difference of options.

If 5% - usually not a big deal.

At 50%, it's a higher level of decision making.

Jim Johnson · Answer

I’d look at this less as a $6K revenue play and more as a control + optionality decision.

If you’re already solving the moisture issue, taking it one step further to make the space usable tends to pay off over time — not always directly through rent, but through fewer headaches and more flexibility.

On the monetization side, in my experience:
• Laundry usually gets adoption if it’s convenient and priced reasonably
• Storage is more hit-or-miss unless tenants actually need it
• Bundling can work, but only if the value is obvious day-to-day

The bigger difference is usability. “Dry” vs “clean and usable” changes how tenants interact with the space. Once it feels intentional (even if unfinished), people are more likely to use it — and pay for it.

The risk isn’t really the $6K — it’s overestimating adoption. If only a portion of tenants opt in, the payback stretches pretty quickly.

Where this usually works well is:
• Keeping it optional (like you’re planning)
• Not overbuilding it beyond what tenants will actually use
• Treating any income as upside, not something you need to justify the cost

If it were me, I’d lean toward doing it — mainly for the long-term flexibility and tenant experience — and treat the revenue as a bonus rather than the primary driver.

Bruce Woodruff · Answer

Option B. And make sure that you waterproof from the outside, not inside.

Caleb Brown · Answer

Option B seems solid. 6K is not insane so worth the added cost in the long run

Joel Miller · Answer

I agree with Michael. Additionally, option B will probably help you yield a higher price when you sell to the next investor.

Basement Waterproofing: Stop at Dry or Spend +$6K to Monetize?

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