How to Make a Crawl Space Livable

Decide what you want to use the crawl space for, whether it's a home office, guest bedroom or home theater. Choose a use for the crawlspace that you'll use a great deal, since the act of converting it will be expensive and you'll want to get the most out of the money you spend.

Choose a home construction company that concentrates on groundwork and structural repairs and remodeling, as those types of companies collaborate with engineers and architects habitually to overcome common and not-so-common problems with building and remodeling. Since this is such an expensive process, pick a company that has a track record of reliable work and meeting completion date deadlines.

Communicate with the company and discuss the use for the crawl space. That way, you can plan together, using blueprints of your house. For example, if it's going to be a spare bedroom, there shouldn't be a support column in the middle of the room. Or if it's going to be a home movie theater, there shouldn't be ventilation windows behind where the movie screen will be.

Ask the construction company for a projected completion date and inquire if they think they can realistically meet it. If so, use that date in the written agreement or contract as the deadline for work to be completed.