Turn your Garage into a Spacious Living Room

Garage conversions are probably one of the easiest and cost-effective ways of adding extra living space and value to your home. The framework is already in place and most-likely all that it needs is some small-scale construction and internal cosmetics. A simple garage has more potential than you can ever imagine. With a little effort and imagination, you can turn a cold and sober place in a welcoming and peaceful area…or not. The final result depends on your wishes! The options are endless.

What does it take to convert a Garage into a Living Area?

Most garage conversion ideas will involve a little design ingenuity to turn them into practical living spaces. As garages were originally designed to house cars, they are relatively long and narrow spaces that don’t instantly lend themselves to habitable living.

You may need to knock down or reposition walls to make the most of the extra square footage and some homeowners choose to combine this project with a ground floor remodel to really maximize the benefits of the additional space and how it works with the rest of the existing home.

Whatever the reason for you wanting to convert your garage, maybe your kitchen was too small, you needed a utility room or somewhere to house your hobbies or work from home, you’ll find some great double garage conversion ideas below.

  • Garage converted into a Family Play Area

Kids are always full of energy. Why not teach them how to channel it on something good for their health, like sport? Who knows, maybe in time they will develop a passion for sports! Besides that, such a place will stimulate their imagination and help them to improve their skills. Climbing monkey bars, swings, ropes, gym mats, sounds like a perfect playground, don’t you think?

  • Garage converted into a Guest House

Always be prepared for surprise visits! Think about your friends from out of town. Where could they sleep if they decide to come over? Turn your garage in a small guest house and you won’t have to be concerned about this anymore. Use a room divider as a TV stand, this also provides storage and architectural detail to the room.

  • Use Your Converted Garage for Your Hobbies

If you want to make space to enjoy your hobbies from home, then creating a dedicated zone is a great idea for your converted garage.

This could include a:

  • home cinema
  • games room
  • man cave
  • library/reading room
  • craft/hobby workshop

Having a dedicated space for your hobbies means that you can kit out the room as required without impacting on your existing layout (or affecting other family members).

You might also find that the long and narrow shape of the existing garage works well with your chosen hobby and removing existing walls is unnecessary.

Depending on the use, you could even install an entrance door to allow direct access for visitors.

  • Use a Converted Garage as a Home Office

Another great garage conversion idea is to design a home office. This can make perfect sense as garages are usually located away from the main living areas and allow for a self-contained entrance for work-related visitors.

Having a designated work space means you can set your workstation up as you need, and you don’t have to worry about the room having a dual purpose.

  • Turn the Garage into a Home Gym

Fitness fans may enjoy installing workout equipment in their homes, but it can prove problematic if this equipment has to be located in existing living space. Housing a home gym in a garage conversion is a great way to avoid large items like a treadmill or elliptical machine in your living room.

Having a dedicated space will allow you to kit out the space with hard-wearing, slip-resistant flooring that may not be suited to other areas of your home. You could also consider adding an air conditioning unit or soundproofing measures.

The cost to convert your garage!

Making the switch from a garage to a living space costs about $10,000 to $15,000, depending on room size and excluding plumbing. A typical conversion includes adding insulation inside the drywall, bringing the floor level to the rest of the house and protecting the floor from moisture.

Do you need permission convert your garage?

Planning permission is not usually required to convert your garage into additional living space for your home, providing the work is internal and does not involve enlarging the building.

However, sometimes permitted development rights have been removed by condition which may prevent a garage from being able to be converted without planning permission. This is often the case if your property is located in a housing estate.

A condition attached to a planning permission may also require that the garage remain as a parking space. In such instances you will need to apply for permission to vary or remove the condition.

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