Why so many carports?

[Anonymous]

Most mid century homes in the area are shit-shacks that are more or less worthless if it were not for the land they sit on. It is pointless to add a garage onto a home like that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most mid century homes in the area are shit-shacks that are more or less worthless if it were not for the land they sit on. It is pointless to add a garage onto a home like that.

No, obviously the houses aren't "worthless", and the reason to add a garage is becauseyou want one. I know it's hard to understand, but actual people live in those houses, they are not just to show the haves what shitshacks are.

[Anonymous]

How many bikes can one guy possibly own?

[Anonymous]

A neighbor mentioned wanting to convert their carport to a garage, but deciding against it.

Their decision had something to do with the cost of converting. If I recall correctly, they mentioned that the foundation of the carport was not the same as what was required by code for a garage, so they would have to tear the carport slab out and put a new one in before they could convert to a garage. That was more money than it was worth to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here- I'm surprised by these responses. Really no garages? It's actually our #1 criteria. My husband is a bicyclist and we have lots of bicycles. A garage would be a heaven send. We also have a convertible.

I'm from an area without basements and most homes had 3 garages and cars never sat out.

Same here. I miss our three car garage.

[Anonymous]

We are from the northeast and I agree that it's a little odd that so many expensive homes don't have garages (let alone 2 car garages). We ended up in a newer townhome, and this was one of the reasons.

[Anonymous]

I live in a carport neighborhood where many of them have been converted to garages. Without exception, the conversions look like crap. They don't go with the character of the original house, they're almost all out-of-a-box add-ons. Granted the homes here are starter homes, not architectural masterpieces, but they have some character for their era (mid-50s). The add-on garages and breezeways, though, make them look like double-wides. (Especially the ones where they did the addition with vinyl siding, even though the original house is brick. I kid you not.)

Sure, I'd love a convertible and a garage to keep it in. But to do that I'd have to move. I don't want the convertible that much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are from the northeast and I agree that it's a little odd that so many expensive homes don't have garages (let alone 2 car garages). We ended up in a newer townhome, and this was one of the reasons.

Ha! You got me. I can't believe there are so many people in the Washington suburbs who live in townhouses. I can understand if you're living in a desirable, inside the beltway home but a townhouse outside the beltway? Blows my mind. Detached house with a carport everytime for this guy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A neighbor mentioned wanting to convert their carport to a garage, but deciding against it.

Their decision had something to do with the cost of converting. If I recall correctly, they mentioned that the foundation of the carport was not the same as what was required by code for a garage, so they would have to tear the carport slab out and put a new one in before they could convert to a garage. That was more money than it was worth to them.

Yes, this is true.

OP - It is VERY expensive to convert a carport to garage. It's not like you slap up a few sheets of drywall and call Sears to install the garage door, it's much much much more than that. The carport concrete needs to rip out and a new thicker foundation laid (that is a big job in itself). The sides (studs, drywall) need to go up. Electrical needs to get done. Roofing. Attaching it to the house. Everything needs to be level, waterproofed. Garage door installed and aligned.
And inspected and to code.

So, yes, OP, it sorta is a big deal to convert. And probably why the home builder opts for carports as the "cheap" alternative to a garage and why those with carports have to think seriously if they want to put their money to a new kitchen or a garage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A neighbor mentioned wanting to convert their carport to a garage, but deciding against it.

Their decision had something to do with the cost of converting. If I recall correctly, they mentioned that the foundation of the carport was not the same as what was required by code for a garage, so they would have to tear the carport slab out and put a new one in before they could convert to a garage. That was more money than it was worth to them.

Yes, this is true.

OP - It is VERY expensive to convert a carport to garage. It's not like you slap up a few sheets of drywall and call Sears to install the garage door, it's much much much more than that. The carport concrete needs to rip out and a new thicker foundation laid (that is a big job in itself). The sides (studs, drywall) need to go up. Electrical needs to get done. Roofing. Attaching it to the house. Everything needs to be level, waterproofed. Garage door installed and aligned.
And inspected and to code.

So, yes, OP, it sorta is a big deal to convert. And probably why the home builder opts for carports as the "cheap" alternative to a garage and why those with carports have to think seriously if they want to put their money to a new kitchen or a garage.

Whoa, who said anything about permits? There's probably already an electrical outlet in the carport that we can tap into for the garage door opener and the existing slab already is strong enough for the car - adding the walls shouldn't be too much more. Come on, we can knock this job out before the Redskins game kicks off.

[Anonymous]

I grew up in the northeast and initially thought it was odd to build an unattractive carport or nothing at all. I ended up buying a house with neither, and I have to say I don't miss that dirty, dark, greasy area. There's usually not enough snow here to justify its necessity for more than a few nights a year. Garages are really just storage areas, and personally, the more storage I have, the more crap I accumulate.

[Anonymous]

If I had $30,000 right now to throw at my 1950s ranch, I'd put to toward the kitchen, not a garage that takes away space from my yard. We spent $3,000 on a nice roomy shed and called it a day. My car occasionally gets tree sap on it, but oh well, I'll have to deal til we move back down South and get a bigger place for half the price.

[Anonymous]

Carports are usually very small. If you convert one, I can't imagine you're going to get enough space for all these bikes of which you speak.

[Anonymous]

I also believe that there are regulations about how close the structure can be to the property line. I recall looking at a house that had a carport and asking about conversion, but being told that the county wouldn't allow it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here- I'm from the south where there are no basements, so garages were all you had. I currently have a condo and our lack of garage is the main reason we're selling. We have absolutely no where to store our stuff and bicycles.

most homes have a basement here. you can put your stuff there. or buy a house with a car port and convert it to a garage (although I bet it would be very expensive, considering the costs of doing anything to a house in DC). we live in DC, have a ona car garage and have never parked the car inside (we do have our bikes there though)