Is adding an entrance to my basement a good idea?

[Ben Workman]

I’m relatively new to this community. I’m in Spanish Fork, Utah. I’ve casually read discussions here, but this is my first post.

My wife and I are in our second house hack. We have an apartment in our basement that we rent. The apartment doesn’t have a separate entrance so we are currently sharing the front entrance with our tenants. I know there is some risk to this, but we feel really good about the tenants we have. I’ve been trying to find someone to put a separate entrance in the basement so it’s more private for both of us. It’s been difficult to find someone that has time to help me. Maybe I don’t know where to look.

My questions are:

1. Is it a good idea investment wise to add the entrance? I would try to pay for the project using a HELOC from my first house hack that's completely rented out now.

2. What are some good ways to find contractors that can help me with this project? 

Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts!