In the Boston area, a tragic number of basements spend their entire lives as dark, underutilized spaces. These basements could easily be refinished, transforming them into welcoming, enjoyable spaces that enhance the family’s enjoyment of their home. If you know this could be true for your home, but have no idea how you’d use the extra space a finished basement would provide, consider these three popular basement finishing ideas:

The Storage Spectacular: Holiday decorations, sports gear, out of season clothing, tax records and all sorts of other stuff are important enough to us that we want to hold onto them, but not so important that we’re willing to sacrifice living space in our homes to store it. Having your basement finished to provide a safe, convenient storage facility is smart: you never have to shell out for monthly storage unit fees, you can access your stuff any time you want it, and your basement finishing company can work with you to create the ideal storage conditions for your possessions as needed.

The Home Gym: We all know we should work out. But sometimes going to the gym is not so much fun. If you’re not already fit, it can be intimidating to work out in the company of people who spend every free minute in spin class. Plus gym memberships are extremely expensive! Having your basement transformed into a convenient, private home gym means you’ll have a space where you can meet your fitness goals in the comfort of your own home.

The “Third Space”: Grown ups need a place to hang out and have fun that isn’t necessarily the bar or nightclub. Increasing numbers of Boston homeowners are using basement remodels to create a third space for themselves: a fun gathering area for them and their friends. Think the ultimate man cave, with a large screen TV and convenient fridge for watching the game, or a great place for book club to meet.

When choosing a basement finishing system for your Massachusetts home, make sure to talk about your flooring options. Flooring isn’t the most exciting part of a basement renovation – after all, how much time do we spend studying the surface beneath our feet? – but making the right flooring choices can significantly how much you enjoy spending time in your new space.

Many unfinished basements in Massachusetts have basic poured concrete floors. In some cases, carpeting may have been installed directly on the concrete. In a small percentage of homes, the basement ‘floor’ can be bare earth. These are all less than ideal flooring choices for a space you’re going to be comfortable in. In addition to being aesthetically blah, they’re hard to walk around on. They’re also not always perfectly level, which makes installing furniture, exercise equipment, or even storage shelving difficult.

A great Boston basement finishing system will offer you options. Selecting the right flooring option begins by knowing how you’ll want to use your finished basement: a home gym designed for hard core workouts needs a different sort of floor than a comfy family room where everyone can lounge around and watch movies together. Talk to your basement finishing contractor about what will work best for your needs and budget. Hardwood flooring, laminate, cork, and carpeting choices are all available. Some flooring options are better for soundproofing purposes than others; if this is a concern to you, make sure to mention it to your contractor.

Many people are pleasantly surprised by how changing their basement flooring can radically alter the appearance of their basement. By adding color, texture and warmth to your new space, the right flooring choice can make all the difference in the world.

“As a gamer, I was thrilled when my daughter first got into gaming,” Merrick said. “So many of my great childhood memories came from hanging out with my friends for hours as we played together – to see Shea was going to have that same experience was wonderful for me.”

The appeal of having four or more teenagers crowded into Merrick’s Boston living room quickly paled. “I realized a critical part of my childhood experience was the fact we used to play in the den downstairs,” she said with a laugh. “Away from parents and younger siblings.” After one too many evenings dealing with the drama of trying to keep Shea’s younger brother from bothering her, Merrick realized what needed to be done. “We needed our own version of the downstairs den – in our case, a finished basement in our Boston home!”

Converting the basement into a family room was a fairly straightforward process for Merrick’s family. “I called the Boston basement remodeling contractor my co-worker had used when he’d had his basement turned into a home office for his wife,” she said. “They came out, looked at the space we had, talked about what we wanted to have happen, and came up with a plan.” Covering exposed walls, installing a ceiling and flooring, and adding lighting helped transform what had been a dark, somewhat creepy space into a great place for teens to hang out.

“The team was so fast and professional,” Merrick said. “I hardly knew they were there. Everything was completed on time and budget, which I really appreciated. And now,” she added with a smile, “we’ve gotten our living room back while the kids are still safe at home, having a good time. Everybody wins!”