The current economic climate has made it difficult for many families to move to a bigger home, and has left some families struggling to pay their mortgages. Many choose to sell their house quickly in order to finance a move. In some cases, those struggling families have been forced to come up with creative solutions to their space, or money problems. One such option is transforming their garage into a second home or small studio - either for use themselves, or to let out to a lodger.
Turning a garage into a small studio home is not as difficult as it sounds, and can be a great way to re-claim unused space. If your garage currently holds boxes of junk, rather than a car, why not clean it out and make it suitable for use as a home?
Converting your garage into a fully functional home complete with a small kitchen and a bathroom may be an expensive proposition, and will require you to comply with a lot of building regulations. Lower scale conversions, however, can be simple and inexpensive.
If all you need is some extra space for your own family, then a converted garage can make a good home gym, children's play area, home "cinema" for entertaining, or a large lounge. Depending on the configuration of your home, you could get a small door installed to link your garage to your home, or remove the garage doors and replace them with large oak doors. For an extra luxurious, country style appearance, you could choose oak doors in a barn or stable style, making your garage look like a country barn from the outside.
Once you've sorted out the doors, you will need to consider insulation, flooring, skirting boards, and wallpaper. You may need to do some extensive work on the floor and the walls before the garage is ready to be decorated. Insulation can be a particularly troublesome issue - in some cases you can add the insulation without too much work, but in other cases you may need to dig up the floor and insulate the building as if it were a new build.
Things to Consider Before Renovating Your Garage
If you don't own your home, you will need to read your lease carefully before you do any work at all. Even if you own your home, there may be something in your paperwork that restricts what you can do. If you have any doubts at all, get your agreement checked by a professional.
If you will be knocking down any walls, or changing the size of your garage, then you will need planning permission before you can start work. If all you're doing is painting the interior, then you shouldn't need planning permission, but once again it pays to be cautious. This is especially true if you live in a listed building.
In some areas, the local authority does not want people to convert designated parking spaces into buildings that are designed for another purpose. This is something that varies from local authority to local authority, so it's best to seek advice from an expert in your area.
If you're lucky enough to have a double garage, then you may want to convert one side of it, and leave the other side as a designated parking space.
Turning a garage into a small studio home is not as difficult as it sounds, and can be a great way to re-claim unused space. If your garage currently holds boxes of junk, rather than a car, why not clean it out and make it suitable for use as a home?
Converting your garage into a fully functional home complete with a small kitchen and a bathroom may be an expensive proposition, and will require you to comply with a lot of building regulations. Lower scale conversions, however, can be simple and inexpensive.
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If all you need is some extra space for your own family, then a converted garage can make a good home gym, children's play area, home "cinema" for entertaining, or a large lounge. Depending on the configuration of your home, you could get a small door installed to link your garage to your home, or remove the garage doors and replace them with large oak doors. For an extra luxurious, country style appearance, you could choose oak doors in a barn or stable style, making your garage look like a country barn from the outside.
Once you've sorted out the doors, you will need to consider insulation, flooring, skirting boards, and wallpaper. You may need to do some extensive work on the floor and the walls before the garage is ready to be decorated. Insulation can be a particularly troublesome issue - in some cases you can add the insulation without too much work, but in other cases you may need to dig up the floor and insulate the building as if it were a new build.
Things to Consider Before Renovating Your Garage
If you don't own your home, you will need to read your lease carefully before you do any work at all. Even if you own your home, there may be something in your paperwork that restricts what you can do. If you have any doubts at all, get your agreement checked by a professional.
If you will be knocking down any walls, or changing the size of your garage, then you will need planning permission before you can start work. If all you're doing is painting the interior, then you shouldn't need planning permission, but once again it pays to be cautious. This is especially true if you live in a listed building.
In some areas, the local authority does not want people to convert designated parking spaces into buildings that are designed for another purpose. This is something that varies from local authority to local authority, so it's best to seek advice from an expert in your area.
If you're lucky enough to have a double garage, then you may want to convert one side of it, and leave the other side as a designated parking space.
