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Original poster

4 bed house without a garage.

52 replies

NoTeaForMe · 02/03/2020 07:28

We’re looking at converting our garage into a second living room and utility/boot room. It’s a large garage, not quite a double but bigger than a single.
However, then the house wouldn’t have a garage. We would put a decent shed in the garden for bikes and you can get from the garden to the front but are wondering if this would put people off in the future. Should we keep the garage? TIA

OP posts:
museumum · 02/03/2020 07:30

It’s fine for most people but serious cyclists won’t keep them in a shed. Ours are too expensive, they’re insured in the garage but wouldn’t be in a shed.
Can you make the utility/boot room big enough for a bike or two? That would solve the main problem.

Zenithbear · 02/03/2020 07:35

We have a double garage for the motorbikes and dps work equipment. A single would be ok, but we wouldn't even view a property with no garage.

peekaboob · 02/03/2020 07:37

I am looking to move to a 4/5 bed with garage and the amount of houses that size without a garage is huge. Is there anyway you could add a small extension for the boot room/utility?

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gladysinthepicture · 02/03/2020 07:40

where weve moved its really common for 3/4 bed houses to have converted their garages into rooms. It put us off immediatley. A shed isnt secure enough for some stuff.

TheThreeHeadedBeast · 02/03/2020 07:44

Is the 4th bedroom the attic, as if I could cope without a garage I definately couldn't cope without an attic as well?

chesterfuckingdrorrs · 02/03/2020 07:44

A lot of people round us have converted their garages into rooms however it would definitely put me off.

Sheds are ok but are not particularly secure so if that was the only storage option I'd look elsewhere.

Awks · 02/03/2020 07:44

We've done exactly that. It's brilliant and suits us so well - our garage was full of crap, we couldn't get a car in it and the cars were always on the drive so no change for us in that regard. We've left storage at the back so haven't gone full length as our garage was v long so keep the bikes etc in there.

tryingtocatchthewind · 02/03/2020 07:47

I wouldn’t view a property without a garage - I keep my car in ours

RhymingRabbit3 · 02/03/2020 07:47

If you're not planning on moving any time soon (5 years plus) I would just do what makes the house good for you now. I would rather live in a house which is suitable for my needs than go without for fear of putting off potential buyers years down the road.

Purplewithred · 02/03/2020 07:49

It really depends on your area, what other space you have round the house, and your house’s current design. We converted ours and it definitely added value but ours is a top heavy townhouse with plenty of Other parking space in a commuter town where nobody has a big garden and garages are mostly seen as an opportunity to convert.

Ask a local estate agent.

ThunderboltandLightning · 02/03/2020 07:50

It would definitely put me off. I wouldn't even bother going to look at a house with a conversion like that. One at the end of our road has been done, they had to take nearly £50k off the sale price to get it sold (listed at 650k), with the main objection from viewers being the lack of garage.

BumbleBeeFlower · 02/03/2020 07:55

I have never been fussed about having a garage and in fact most people I know either don't have one or do have one but just use it to store crap.
I think a robust, secure shed in the garden with a concrete base is fine. You can buy ground anchors for bikes/expensive equipment to stop them from going walkabout.

AJPTaylor · 02/03/2020 08:04

We are doing ours later this year. We have ample parking for 3 cars and our house lacks rooms downstairs. I think it probably depends on the area.

Troels · 02/03/2020 08:05

We wouldn't look at a house without a garage, Dh has a lot of tools and workbenches and is in there a lot. He made a laundry area in ours too, as we don't have a utility room.

eurochick · 02/03/2020 08:16

We live in a 6 bed house with no garage. There used to be one but it was knocked down when the previous people extended sideways. I don't miss it at all. We have a large drive and a shed plus side access.

We put our house on the market 18 months ago and had multiple offers within days so it didn't seem to put off others.

ShirleyPhallus · 02/03/2020 08:22

We viewed a lot of houses and any that had garages had very old fashioned ones that weren’t big enough for our car

I wouldn’t care about a garage but it has to look like a room, ie don’t just keep the garage door on the outside and fail to insulate it properly

bigbluebus · 02/03/2020 08:23

Firstly check with your local authority whether you are allowed to do it. When we converted one of our garages (we still have one) we had to get the go ahead from the LA as it was classed as a parking space (even though we never put a car in it) so we had to confirm to them how many parking spaces remained. This was 15 years ago so things may have changed. There is a small housing development going up at the end of our road. None of the 4 bed houses had garages in the original plans. Interesting that they subsequently submitted a planning application to build garages for the 2 larger 4 beds as neither had sold.
I couldn't manage without my garage. It houses a fridge and freezer as well as 4 bikes and all sorts of other clutter. We also have a shed for gardening tools.

Aroundtheworldin80moves · 02/03/2020 08:27

DH has a motorbike, so yes we need a garage, or at least a carport with secure posts of locks.

Original poster
NoTeaForMe · 02/03/2020 08:30

Hmm. Very helpful everyone. Thank you. We may need to look at knocking it down and starting again as we want to go above it too. So size and what we use it for is very up for negotiation. I think some of it will have to stay as storage, that bit wouldn’t be full garage size though. Very early stages of planning a complete renovation so I’ll take all your points on board. Thanks.

OP posts:
user1333796 · 02/03/2020 08:38

We live in a 4/5 bed Victorian terrace rental with no garage that we are considering buying. Currently it has a converted attic that we aren't allowed to use as a bedroom as it hasn't been approved as a bedroom, but we don't mind as we need the attic space as storage. If we bought, we'd have the attic approved as a bedroom, and add built in storage shelves to the box room and use that as storage (for camping and Christmas things mainly). For us, a garage isn't essential. I can only find new build 4 bed houses with garages locally, and I'd rather have the extra bedrooms and a period property than one of those.

LolaSmiles · 02/03/2020 08:41

There's been a trend in our area to do that, but they were the properties that took longer to sell.

We ruled out houses with no garage.

Howmanysleepsnow · 02/03/2020 09:25

We have a 5 bed without a garage. It’s Edwardian, so no cars around then! We live in a road of similar houses, all occupied so they can’t put that many people off!

ActualHornist · 02/03/2020 09:49

Contrary to most on here - I can’t imagine being bothered at all about garage or lack there of. I never even look when browsing Rightmove.

bathorshower · 02/03/2020 10:56

Do you have a driveway? If so, certainly where I live, you wouldn't need a garage - we do have one, but are unusual among our friends. However having nowhere to park a car would be a real issue.

tiredanddangerous · 02/03/2020 11:07

I’m watching with interest because we’re considering doing the same. We have an integrated garage and want to turn it into a second reception room. We’ve never put our car in it but do use it for storage. If we go ahead we’ll put a sturdy metal shed in the garden for the bikes/lawnmower etc.

Maybe you could ask a local estate agent for advice op? They would be likely to know if it would affect the value of your house.