I also understand mortgage pay down and appreciation are extra, significant, bonuses but I really don't want to bank on appreciation.

The end result was a reasonable list of extra items with 50% of their cost being about equal to what we sought the price reduction to be.

They usually don’t charge any extra as long as they are doing the closing of the sale Good luck. 

I like crawl space houses here for that reason unless I'm living in it and want the extra tornado protection.Regarding the wiring comment, yes you can just run the grounds together because they go to the same place ultimately but there aren't enough outlets and the wiring is fiberglass insulated and by now has crumbled away in this climate.

With 4 extra beds and some other additional amenities from the upgrade, I aim to get around $4000. 

You can even AirBnB the basement when you aren't there while on flights or out of the city for extra income! 

Give full disclosure to the landlord, maybe pay a little extra on the monthly rent, and sublet rooms to the same clients. 

I have two roommates that rent out the extra rooms for $500 each.

I have two roommates that rent out the extra rooms for $500 each.

With a detached garage, workshop space, basement or ADU ect - something I could turn into an extra room or at least into additional equity.