I live in Illinois-a raised ranch that has a finished basement.....except the area around the "guts"
of the house.........that is where I live.........one half is "my sewing spot" and across the room is the longarm home.......there are two large windows so sunlight is not lacking.......the fact that the furnace/a/c are in the space with me make it cozy warm in winter and cool in summer......and when I want a break I walk into the finished area and watch tv or go into the office and check computer, but let me mention that before we bought this house we had it tested for radon, since I had planned to use the basement, and yes it had high levels so the previous owner had to have that corrected...there is some kind of gizmo in the garage that does whatever it is supposed to to keep level in safe area.......I don't know if radon is a problem in other parts of country/world.........Oh, and by the way, I did paint the concrete outside walls a soft butter yellow and I love my world........