Would you buy a house without a garage?

[Anonymous]

We have a 1960s colonial house in the DC suburbs. Estimated value is $900k right now. We need more space and are debating about moving (don’t really want to) or doing a huge renovation where we convert our small garage into a two store addition. House is 4 bedroom and 2.5 bathrooms. Would add an additional office, bathroom and bedroom over the space and then below would add a workout space and a mud room.

Would you buy a close to 4000 sq ft house with no garage?

[Anonymous]

How big is the current garage? You said small, but does that mean it’s only one-car?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How big is the current garage? You said small, but does that mean it’s only one-car?

Op here - yes small one car garage. We can’t even fit our car in there anymore (filled with bikes, etc). But we once upon a time could fit a small sedan or small suv

[Anonymous]

No

[Anonymous]

I wouldn’t sweat losing a one-car garage. Anyone buying a house that size is going to have 2 or more cars anyway.

[Anonymous]

I live in a 1960s neighborhood with no garages. If everyhouse in your neighborhood has one I would be more concerned.

[Anonymous]

Oops—hit submit too soon. This is PP above. Anyone who views a garage as a must have is probably going to be looking for 2-car garages anyway. Make sure you have a large storage shed for bikes, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live in a 1960s neighborhood with no garages. If everyhouse in your neighborhood has one I would be more concerned.

Op here - no half the houses in our neighborhood have converted garages as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No

Same here. A house that sized without a garage is a deal breaker. And I’ve owned 3 houses without garages, but at 2,000 sqft

[Anonymous]

Garage is a must for suburban living.

[Anonymous]

Why can't you convert the space above but leave the garage?

[Anonymous]

You need 5 bedrooms and an office? How old are the kids? How many people live there?

[Anonymous]

Are you in a close-in suburb or farther out? Almost none of the houses in our neighborhood have garages, but we’re close-in and the lots are smaller.

[Anonymous]

No.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You need 5 bedrooms and an office? How old are the kids? How many people live there?

Op here - we have 3 young kids who are 8 years old and under (only 4.5 years between oldest and youngest). So all the kids will be living at home for their teen years together. DH and I both work from home the majority of time so need dedicated office spaces. And we have a lot of out of town guests since our families aren’t from here.