Hi all you wonderful people, I have literally just receive my system and have complete Newbie question. What is meant by below grade when setting the floor info. I can’t find info on this anywhere. Thank you 
It basically means, “is this floor under ground?” or a basement. If you select the basement floor it auto selects below grade. You should select this even if the floor is only partially below grade, such as a walk-out basement.
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See What Does Below Grade Mean? | Real Estate Definition.
Depending on your jurisdiction, the definition may vary a little. It’s best to find out what the rules are from your local real estate board.
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Thank you. On the house I am shooting tomorrow, there is the main lounge area and the bedrooms and a bathroom are all on the same level but the kitchen is slightly lower by 3 steps down and the dining is adjacent to the kitchen, should they be marked as below grade as well?
I would not mark it below grade. Below grade areas are not included in the “livable” square footage number so if you mark it below grade, your agent will likely have an issue with the reported square footage number.
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Thank you 
Ya, you really have to know how square footage is reported in your jurisdiction. I’m from Vancouver Island where under-grade basements are rare, and square footage almost always assumes all finished area even in partially below-grade basements. I always check BC Assessment website to see how the taxation department reports the square footage. Maybe there’s a similar resource in your market. Back in Alberta below-grade finished spaces aren’t typically included. For my area I get control over reporting by calling all levels “above ground” so that I can manually edit a space to be considered “unfinished”; and thereby excluded from finished area calculations. Please note that if the basement is called “above ground” so that a one or two finished areas can be included in the total finished area, the perimeter wall area comes with it. If you call the basement “above ground” and all spaces are unfinished, you’ll still get a finished area for the basement which could be confusing for you client— that would be the perimeter wall length times the wall thickness. This is important to understand. A rectangular bungalo total square footage will equal the paint to paint length x width (without subtracting any interior walls) plus the exterior wall length x wall thickness. If you understand this, you can predict the effects of including a questionable lower level.
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Those of us on this forum, FB, and elsewhere can be well-intentioned but have no idea about the regulations in your area – or be just plain wrong.
Since you are ultimately the one responsible for the accuracy of your work, better to be clear on the regulations that apply to you straight from the source. Check with your local real estate board to ensure that you’re complying with the regulations that apply to your location. If your client is an experienced realtor, you could get their input. (e.g. “this looks below grade, doesn’t it?”)
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