A garage is a sought after feature for a home, especially in a town like St. Louis where we experience all types of weather conditions. With years of experience in St. Louis real estate, The Boehmer Team members have seen all types of garages. We’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly as well as garages that one would really envy. Here we’ll discuss the types, sizes and details that we see frequently to help clear up common questions we get as well as show some envious additional options and features for garages.
Oversized Garage
First of all, let’s talk oversized
garage. Typical garages are anywhere from 18 to 20 feet in width and length. (A
20’ x 19’ garage one frequently sees in real estate listings is not an
oversized garage.) So what is considered an oversize garage? An oversized
garage is not necessarily any particular size dimension. However it does
include additional space, usually on one side or toward the back of the garage,
but not enough space for another car.
When listing a home, The Boehmer Team considers a garage that is 22 feet or deeper as oversized. In addition, our local multiple listing system, MARIS, now allows garage dimensions to be entered in the system. This helps agents when searching for a specific garage size. If The Boehmer Team refer to a garage as oversized, we almost always put the dimensions in Maris.
Tandem Garage
A tandem garage has a long interior space. This allows for two cars to park end to end (or front to back) rather than the traditional side by side. This garage type might be great for someone who has additional vehicles or needs a lot of extra garage storage. One thing you may want to consider is that on a rare occasion, appraisers will not give full credit as an additional parking space. We have had the rare occasion that an appraiser will only consider the number of garage doors when submitting an appraisal. So the appraiser can make a difference.
Heated and Insulated Garages
Although it is still considered an outside space, insulating a garage and garage door will help minimize extreme temperatures when the garage door is closed. If the garage has insulation, drywall and drywall tape, the tape seams will hold up better if the garage walls and ceiling are insulated. In most municipalities, it is not code compliant to run duct work and vent the garage with the HVAC system used in the home. Allowing fumes and air from the garage to enter the home is extremely dangerous and against safety codes in most areas. An additional heater may be installed that runs independently from the HVAC system in the home in some cases.
If you use your
garage for a workshop or spend a lot of time in it, insulation and heating are
going to be worth considering. Also, insulation and heating in a garage brings
more value to a home overall.
Upgrading the Garage Interior
A garage door opener is a garage upgrade that most homebuyers expect in a garage and will notice if there isn’t one. If you’re selling a home with a garage, make sure your garage opener is in good working condition.
Other ways to upgrade the garage include putting up drywall and painting it to improve the look and feel as well as insulating it. Adding shelving and storage for common garage items is another way to upgrade the garage and make it more appealing.
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| Creative garage storage made with a pallet. |
Additional in-garage upgrades include lighting, additional electrical outlets, low voltage additions, workbenches, a bar, a refrigerator, a hangout area, a gym and more. We’ve certainly seen some pretty cool garage upgrades like these below in our time in real estate.
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| Garage Storage |
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| Garage Workshop |
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| Garage Gym |
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| Garage Lounge |
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| Garage Game Room |
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| Garage Man Cave |
Garage Curb Appeal
As part of your property, the look of your garage can add or detract from the property’s total value. The exterior or curb appeal of the garage is what most people will notice about it. Having garage doors that are in good condition will help maintain the value of your home.
There are many choices in material, color, style, window options, insulation types and hardware for garage doors. With so many options, we suggest speaking with your local garage door sales company for help picking out the best garage door type, style and hardware for your budget and your home. Here are some pictures of great looking garage exteriors to draw inspiration from.
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| We love these wood garage doors with arch windows. |
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| Garage doors painted in a matching accent color look great. |
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| This garage has great exterior lighting and brick driveway divider. |
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| The hardware is great on this garage. |
Looking for a home with more garage space? Contact The Boehmer Team to help you find a home with the garage needs that work for you. We help homebuyers find homes with the details they want and help sellers with highly customized homes find the right buyers. If St. Louis real estate is on your mind, The Boehmer Team is here for you.
