My home is a 1903, and is brick. The basement floor is brick, and the ceiling height is right at 7 feet. The old owner put in all new electric in the entire home, new furnace, all new duct work, all new plumbing throughout entire home also. These were very welcomed additions for the fairly low price I paid for the home and land. However, with the lower type ceiling in the basement (6.5-7 feet), the duct work for the furnace hangs a touch below head level and is a pain in the ass. Every single time I go in the basement, I wish I had a bit more ceiling height, so I had 2 contractors come over and give quotes. To rip out all the old brick in the floor, and dig down about 1-1.25 feet, put in new footers around each basement wall, new floor, and leave it a blank slate, anywhere from 32k-40k. I was expecting around 30k because this is an absolute boat load of work. If I have them frame out 1 bedroom and a bathroom, it goes into the mid/upper 40's. For a complete turn key basement, both contractors came in a touch over 60k. Shit is not cheap this days, and a good contractor is worth his weight in gold if he does quality work. If you can do any type of the work yourself, jump on it and save yourself thousands. From the sounds of your basement though, easy 20k+ for a good contractor to come in.