Murray Basement Finishing plans basement apartments, kitchens and wet bars, bathrooms and egress windows for homes in Sandy, about 7.5 miles from Murray by road. Ask Sandy City which office issues permits and for its checklist before drawing plans; Murray’s checklist applies only in Murray.
Sandy is the larger neighbor, with about 94,000 residents. Around 78 percent of its housing units are one-unit homes, 70 percent are detached houses and 75 percent of homes are owner-occupied, with 1985 as the median year built.
Basement apartment for the owners, with its own door
Example project
Home
1980s stucco house in Sandy
Original request
The owners want to live downstairs and give the upper floors to their children
Space
About 800 sq ft, reached from a door at the foot of the side stair
Rooms
A bedroom, a bathroom, a kitchen and a living room
Not included
Electrical service upgrades
Cost
$78,000
In this example, the owners of a 1980s stucco house in Sandy are ready for a smaller home. They plan to live in the lower level themselves and let their children have the floors above. The side stair leads to a door at the foot of it.
An internal accessory dwelling unit needs a single-family home and an owner who lives on the property, which fits Sandy’s mix of owner-occupied houses. The basement apartment page covers what state law and the building code ask of the unit.
Basement Kitchen and Wet Bar
A wet bar or second kitchen is a smaller step than a unit. Check Sandy’s planning office on whether it asks for a covenant when a kitchen is added; the basement kitchen and wet bar page covers the rest.
Basement Bathroom
The residential code’s ceiling, ventilation and GFCI items apply to a Sandy basement bathroom as they do anywhere; the basement bathroom page lists them.
Sandy homes by age: 42 percent were built before 1980 and about 2 percent before 1950, while roughly 58 percent date from 1950 to 1989. Buildings of five or more units hold about 17 percent of units, and the median owner-occupied value is $614,100.
Housing of the 1970s and 1980s is the core of what the numbers show, and year built does not show foundation type, so whether a house has a basement, and how it was built, is something to see on site.
Radon on the east bench
Sandy has a local radon number. A 1994 Utah Geological Survey study found an average indoor level of 3.8 pCi/L on the east bench near Little Cottonwood Canyon, measured in the 1990s. The state environmental quality department adds that one in three Utah homes test above 4 pCi/L and advises a two-to-four-day test in the basement or lowest level.
The same report cautions that indoor measurements cannot be used to estimate radon hazard in nearby, untested homes. So the practical step is a test in your own house before a finish closes in the walls. Mitigation is separate work for certified mitigators.
Utah adopted the 2021 International Residential Code with state amendments, and that is the code behind any Sandy permit. For an internal accessory dwelling unit, state law limits what a city can restrict and lets it require a licence for renting the unit.
Sandy’s own permit checklist and ADU rules are not covered here. Ask Sandy City for them before plans are drawn.
Do I need a radon test before finishing a basement in Sandy?
The state suggests testing the basement or lowest level, and the Geological Survey’s Sandy figures are old and not a guide to your house. A test before the walls close in tells you what the house has.
Does Sandy have its own basement permit checklist?
Ask Sandy City which office issues permits and for its current requirements before you plan. Murray’s checklist is Murray’s.
Can I finish a basement in a house built in the 1980s?
It can be, once you know what is there. The age of a house does not show its foundation, and a visit finds out the ceiling height, windows and mechanical layout.
Where in Sandy is the house? Tell us how old it is, what the basement looks like now and the rooms you want. We'll get back to you soon with an estimate or any questions we have. Estimates are free and there's no obligation.
