Yet like any other home improvement, you have to wonder: How much does an attached garage add to home value?<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of the time when I do a first-time buyer interview and ask for their wants and needs and wishlist and so forth, I never get anybody who says, \u2018Don\u2019t show me a house with a garage,\u2019\u201d says Scott Freeman<\/a>, a top real estate agent and single-family homes expert serving Riegelsville and southeastern Pennsylvania. \u201cThere might be some people who say, \u2018Well, it doesn\u2019t have to have one.\u2019 But people always like to have a garage, even if they don\u2019t intend to put their car in it.\u201d<\/p>\n Let\u2019s look at the value of an attached garage in terms of marketability and potential return on investment so you can decide whether it\u2019s worth making this vision a reality.<\/p>\n A two-car garage is the staple for most new construction homes, with 65% offering this feature, the NAHB analysis shows. In fact, one NAHB survey survey found that 85% of home buyers wanted garage storage<\/a> as a home feature. Of those, 36% ranked this as a \u201cmust have<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n But where you\u2019re located shifts the size of the garage and the desirability. The Southern Atlantic States<\/a> have the highest share of two car garages at 74%, according to NAHB\u2019s Census analysis. The one-car garage is most popular in the Middle Atlantic states at 24%, while other parking facilities<\/a> including carports and off-street parking took up the largest share of parking options in New England (20%).<\/p>\n In other cases, garages may not be used for parking at all. One study quoted in 2018 in Remodeling <\/i>magazine notes that one in four American homeowners said they couldn\u2019t store a vehicle in their garages because of \u201cunorganized elements.\u201d<\/a> Of those who could contain the clutter, 27% of homeowners used the garage for hobbies, 23% used it to work on cars, 19% used it for woodworking, and 13% used it for exercise or sports.<\/p>\n Building costs for a garage vary widely because of materials and size. HomeAdvisor estimates that building any garage costs about $40 to $70 per square foot<\/a>, but Thumbtack, a directory of skilled professionals in over 1,000 home-related services, estimates the cost at about $30 to $40 per square foot<\/a>.<\/p>\n In general, an attached garage tends to cost about 10% to 15% less than a freestanding or detached garage<\/a> of the same size and materials. That\u2019s because builders can use the walls or power from your current home<\/a>.<\/p>\n At the low end, building a one-car garage of about 288 square feet might cost from $11,500 to $20,200<\/a>. A two-car garage of about 600 square feet might cost about $24,000 to $42,000 <\/a>while a three-car garage of about 900 square feet climbs to about $36,000 to $63,000<\/a>.<\/p>\n That\u2019s just for the basic space: no workshop, living space, or plumbing. A lot of decisions can affect your bottom line, such as:<\/p>\n Because an attached garage is connected to your home, a few other factors come into play as far as building and design. For starters, your municipality might have size restrictions<\/a> on how large it can be. Some cities specify that a garage can\u2019t be more than a certain percentage of a lot\u2019s square footage.<\/p>\n The exterior also has to match the architectural style of your house. If your home has notable features, such as a Spanish tile roof, you\u2019ll want Spanish tile on the garage roof as well.<\/p>\n In addition, your area may have safety requirements for attached garages. Mike Ford<\/a>, a Southern California-based general certified real estate appraiser since 1986, says that in his area, an attached garage \u201chas to be built to more restrictive standards with a firewall and a two- or three-hour fire door between the garage and any living area. Detached garages don’t have that requirement.\u201d<\/p>\n The last time Remodeling <\/i>magazine calculated the return on investment for a garage addition was in 2015, when it ranked among the nation\u2019s 30 most popular remodeling projects. Back then, a 26×26-foot freestanding two-car garage addition cost about $52,000 and recouped only about 65% at resale<\/a>. You also have to consider several factors that will impact how much value an attached garage adds to your home:<\/p>\n More recently, a nationwide analysis of homes sold in 2018 found that having a garage on average added 12% to the sale price<\/a>. But that varies widely depending on location. Midwestern cities with cold winters such as Chicago, IL; St. Louis, MO; Oklahoma City; and Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, put a premium on garages, boosting sale prices in this analysis by as much as 20% to 30%.<\/p>\n This analysis found that having a garage hardly added to the sale price at all in cities with warmer climates such as Raleigh, North Carolina; Austin, Texas; Honolulu, Hawaii; Los Angeles; and San Diego, California. All showed a premium of 5% or less, based on the garage alone.<\/p>\n A \u201cfunctionally adequate\u201d garage in a typical market might add $5,000 to $25,000 worth of value, but \u201cit really depends on the availability of other off-street parking as well as demand [for] available on-street parking,\u201d Ford says. In high-end markets, the value might be higher. \u201cWhere on-street parking or large driveways are not present, the value of a garage goes up quite a bit.\u201d<\/p>\n In dense metropolitan areas such as downtown San Francisco, Manhattan, and Georgetown in Washington, D.C., a garage might be valued quite highly. But in Arlington, Virginia, a garage built circa 1910 with decent driveways might not add much value because of its age and condition. Likewise, Ford says, \u201cIn a clover-leaf-shaped cul-de-sac in Herndon, Virginia, with plenty of street parking and a driveway, its value may be limited to depreciated replacement cost.\u201d<\/p>\n Sure, a garage can keep you dry when you\u2019re bringing home groceries and save you from clearing snow off your car. But its main value? That extra usable space.<\/p>\n \u201cEven a 1920s-era 10×18-foot one-car garage has value as general personal articles storage, even if most modern cars won\u2019t fit in them,\u201d Ford notes.<\/p>\n Angela Miller<\/a>, a certified appraiser in Tidewater, VA, with over 25 years of experience, says she gives as much value for an attached garage as a detached garage, especially in the country. \u201cI also give some value for an unfinished<\/a>, accessible second floor,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Even if you keep the floor plan simple \u2014 as just wide-open space \u2014 consider installing some type of storage system<\/a>. Kiplinger <\/i>reports that 85% of buyers in 2020 want garage storage space, especially if they have a growing family. Adding $2,000 to $2,400 worth<\/a> of peg wall boards, cabinetry, and shelving in 380 square feet keeps tools, pool and patio gear, sporting goods, and other items off the floor, making it accessible and inviting.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/how-much-does-an-attached-garage-add-to-home-value-one-666x381.png\")
<\/a>Attached garages: A top wish list item for many buyers<\/h2>\n
Typical cost to add an attached garage<\/h2>\n
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Additional building considerations<\/h2>\n
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<\/a>How will an attached garage impact the appraisal?<\/h2>\n
Warm weather<\/h3>\n
Parking availability<\/h3>\n
Unique selling features<\/h3>\n