A note on industry terminology: The answer below includes terms like Gross Living Area (GLA), above-grade, below-grade, and finished areas. These are standard industry terms used by appraisers and defined by organizations like ANSI and Fannie Mae. We include them here so agents and buyers can speak the same language as their appraiser — but you won’t see these distinctions on an Open Homes floor plan. Our plans operate on a straightforward binary: every area is classified as either Living Space or Non-Living Space. That’s it.
GLA stands for Gross Living Area (also referred to as “above-grade finished area” under updated Fannie Mae guidelines).
According to an article by Appraisal Partners, GLA is determined by three main criteria: the space must be heated by a conventional heating system (e.g., no space heaters). It must also be finished, meaning it contains walls, floors, and ceilings, among other requirements. Lastly, the space must be directly accessible — usually by hallways or stairs — to another living area.
Garages, unfinished basements, and below-grade spaces are typically excluded from GLA, even if they’re useful or livable.
GLA is the measurement most commonly used by appraisers and is the figure that tends to matter most in price-per-square-foot conversations. When our draftspersons calculate square footage, they follow ANSI guidelines to determine what qualifies as GLA — including rules about ceiling height, grade, and other regulating factors.