What is Included in the Square Footage of a House? Square foot is a very granular unit of measurement of area. It is used in United States and lots of other countries. Not all of the space under your roof counts as living space from an appraiser’s perspective. Some spaces don’t count towards the measured square footage of a home. Interior spaces that are conditioned spaces (heated, and cooled, if necessary) such as bedrooms, bathroom and living rooms. Enclosed patios that are heated and (if the rest of the house is) air-conditioned and are similar in workmanship as the rest of the home. If it still looks like a patio with walls, an independent appraiser will need to make the call as to whether or not to include this space. Finished attic space as long as it also conforms to the original structure (can’t just add carpet and call it a bedroom) and the ceilings are high enough, and the space is conditioned space because at this point it isn’t actually an attic anymore. When we talk about square footage, keep in mind that we’re talking about heated and cooled living area, commonly known as gross living area (GLA). This can be confusing to some people because they think that if an area is not included in the gross living area then they are not getting value for it in their appraisal, however this is not true. These areas are given value but at a lesser amount than the main living area.