We help Wasatch Front homeowners find out whether their basement can legally become a rental — then design and build a permit-ready apartment people actually want to live in. Long-term and 30-day-plus rentals, not nightly Airbnb conversions.
A basement apartment is the only home improvement that can pay you back every month. Here's what a typical project looks like — real numbers, conservatively framed.
| Item | Typical figure |
|---|---|
| Rental-ready basement apartment build (~1,000 sq ft) | $65,000 – $85,000 |
| Wasatch Front rent, basement 1-bed (below apartment-complex rates) | $1,100 – $1,500 / mo |
| Potential gross annual rental income | $13,000 – $18,000 |
| Illustrative simple payback | ~4 – 6 years |
| After payback | Income + home value |
Figures are illustrative planning ranges based on current market rents and typical project scopes — not a quote, and never a guarantee. Actual rent depends on your address, city rules, bedrooms, entrance, parking, and market conditions. Since 2026, lenders can also count projected ADU rental income toward mortgage qualifying on many loans — ask your lender.
Standard basement finishes start around $42 per square foot. Rental conversions are quoted case-by-case — because your house decides the scope, not an average of everyone else's. These are the items that move the number:
Excavation, stairs, and drainage vary dramatically with your lot and grade. Some homes already have a walkout — some need one built.
Every legal bedroom needs a code-compliant escape window. Existing windows sometimes qualify; new wells run several thousand dollars each.
The single biggest cost jump in any conversion — plumbing, electrical, ventilation, and inspection requirements a kitchenette doesn't trigger.
Rated assemblies between your home and the unit, interconnected smoke alarms, and sound insulation your tenant (and you) will appreciate.
Our promise: you pay for your house's actual scope, documented line by line — not a padded flat rate that protects the contractor. Every bid separates the baseline finish from the rental-specific items, so you can see exactly what the apartment costs over a standard finish.
A legal basement rental is a code-and-permits project as much as a construction project. Utah law now allows internal basement apartments in most residential zones — but every city adds its own rules, and they change. A few examples of what we verify before you spend a dollar:
Fines, denied insurance claims, forced tenant eviction, appraisal and resale problems — the risks of an unpermitted apartment fall on you, the homeowner. We build units that are legal, insurable, and appraisable, and we put the permit paperwork in your hand at closing.
Same transparent process you'd expect from us — with a feasibility check up front so nobody wastes time or money.
We review your address against your city's ADU rules and walk the space — entrance, egress, parking, plumbing, ceiling height. You get a straight answer, even if it's "this one won't work."
Baseline finish and rental-specific scope priced separately, with a realistic rent range from current local listings — not a promise.
Permits, trades, and inspections coordinated by one accountable crew. Milestone updates the whole way.
Final approvals, warranties, manuals, and completion photos — everything you need to list the unit or hand it to a property manager.
In most Utah residential zones, yes — state law made internal basement apartments a permitted use in owner-occupied single-family homes. But cities layer on their own requirements, and a few areas restrict them entirely. That's exactly what the feasibility check answers for your specific address.
Usually not. Most Wasatch Front cities require basement apartments to be rented for 30 days or longer, and several prohibit nightly rentals outright. The long-term math is better anyway: steady tenant, no turnover cleaning, and legal nearly everywhere.
We can build the space as a family suite today while preserving a practical path to a permitted rental later — the wiring, plumbing, and layout decisions that make the future conversion cheap instead of painful. Family space today, income tomorrow.
Standard basement finishes estimate reliably from about $42 per square foot. A rental conversion adds the entrance, egress, kitchen, and separation work your house specifically needs — which is why those items are always priced as their own line items in our bids.
Refer a friend to Rocky Ledges — when they sign a project with us, you get $250. Basements, remodels, additions — it all counts. No fine print. Just have them mention your name when they call.
Send Them Our Way — (801) 600-4356Tell us about your space and we'll check your city's rules and get back to you within one business day — with a straight answer either way.
Prefer to talk it through? Call or email — we're happy to answer questions before you commit to anything.