said by robbin:The function of a basement is to lower the foundation to a point below the frost line to prevent frost heaving.
Plain wrong.
You don't NEED a basement to get the foundation below the frost line. Simply excavate a trench wide enough to work in and form/pour the footing. Then add the foundation wall on top of that. There is no need to excavate an entire basement if you don't want to.
Basements, if properly built and waterproofed, can be built well below the water table.