After nearly five years of dealing with a loud and possibly damaging laundry area on the second story (no floor drain, unstable flooring), I'm considering moving the laundry to the basement until we can afford a proper remodel where I'd have an actual laundry room.

Right now, the washer and dryer are stuck in two holes in the wall up on rickety platforms right at the top of the stairs where I think the master bath tub used to be. It was done this way sometime in the 70s based on the yellow vinyl on the platform floors.

With four young kids, the hallway is just a jumble of dirty and clean laundry at all times because there is zero storage beyond having laundry baskets on top of the washer and dryer.

What are the things I need to consider when putting a laundry in the basement, besides the obvious of hauling laundry up and down stairs?

Half of the basement is unfinished so I have access to pipes and floor drain. Can the washer simply discharge into the floor drain? The laundry can go right next to the drain in the unfinished area.

Or, I can extend the basement bathroom and have the laundry off the bath (right under the kitchen). I presume since it's under the kitchen in a currently unfinished area I'd have access to water coming in, but I'm not sure where it would drain. Obviously, there's a stack in the bath, and the toilet would be closest to the laundry.

Any and all thought are appreciated.