To build, or not to build...

[Shoester]

That is the incredibly freaking hard question. In this thread I'm going to flesh out all of the pro's and con's of building on my lot, what's making me hesitant, etc...hopefully some of you will have some thoughts or have been in my shoes before.


Last year I purchased my first home. It sits on a .4 acre lot in a smaller town outside of Kansas City. I commute to KC 40 min each way for work.

I love my house, it is everything and more that I need, my only gripe being that I don't sit on multiple acres.

Naturally, I'm considering putting a detached garage/shop on my lot. I only have one possible location, here, next to my existing attached (18x20 LOL) garage:



Arial representation: (ignore the depth dimension)



The size? 24x30x10' walls. I have a 10' utility easement running along the West property line that I have to deal with, and any deeper and I block my wifes kitchen window view of the 80 undeveloped acres to the West of the house. Obviously this location/size is not ideal...it is going to dwarf my existing garage. It will be finished to look identical to the house, but I'm worried that it's just going to be too big for the location and scare off potential buyers when I sell down the road.


My dilemma is this: do I spend the estimated $15k for my garage (will self perform all work), or do I put that money towards a bigger property in the next 5-7 years? My ultimate dream is to own 40 or 50 acres with a 40x60x16 shop.

I know this isn't a decision that anyone can make for me, but I would really appreciate some input!

 

[joed2323]

Is the size 18x20 the biggest your land allows for or is it all u can afford?

 

[rieferman]

Are you truly capable of finishing all the work yourself and keeping to that price? Nice work by you if so.

I think the detached where you note will look out of place (and believe me, I'm all about detached garages.

Is there any possibility that you could add a bay or two onto your existing garage (to the left, in that direction) and alter the roof line to make it look seamless like it was always there?

 

[SockeyeSummer]

Any chance of buying the lot next to you?

 

[Shoester]

I don't think buying the lot next to me will be worth it...he's asking $29k for it, and I'll still be under an acre overall and still be subject to HOA rules (albeit they aren't very stringent). I'm just not sure if I can justify it.

 

[Shoester]

Are you truly capable of finishing all the work yourself and keeping to that price? Nice work by you if so.



I think the detached where you note will look out of place (and believe me, I'm all about detached garages.



Is there any possibility that you could add a bay or two onto your existing garage (to the left, in that direction) and alter the roof line to make it look seamless like it was always there?

The only thing I won't be doing "myself" is the slab, but a friend owns a concrete business and will be doing it for free (labor).

I haven't really considered adding on to the existing...but just the thought of blowing out an exterior wall gives me a headache!

 

[Flatland Dave]

Any chance of buying the lot next to you?

Yep, that would be my first look. Either side of the house. Even if I had to put off building for a few years. Owning is the best zoning.

 

[38Chevy454]

I also think that extending out your existing garage would be better than adding a detached where you have it laid out. I assume your front door is on the street perpendicular to the garage door, so going out with a 24-26 wide and maybe 24-26 deep garage extension would still look good, but not so much it is going to detract from future sales perspective. Going wider than a strict 2 car would allow for a wall of workbench, tools, shelves, storage and other stuff while still giving enough for 2 cars parking and being able to work. 18x20 is not even close to enough to do any real work.

Being an outside wall, it is probably going to be load supporting and need to do some modification and keep it supporting. Which may mean a beam and not a full length opening between the two garage sections.

 

[PanelDeland]

Another option would be to build a carport in that area. You could use the garage(existing) for a shop, and park under the carport. This should be cheap enough to allow looking for acreage in your timeline. It also means that the carport would probably recoup more percentage wise than the garage addition. Would make a great area for boat storage or such when you sell.

 

[dhubbard422]

A 24x30x10 workshop a few feet from the house that you "love" sounds pretty sweet.

What kind of garage door layout are you considering? Something that matches the house and faces the street?

From the pic of your house and the arial view it appears that there are several interesting roof lines on the house. You might be able to take advantage of this to create the illusion of a smaller street facing garage facade. Assuming the plate line of your existing garage is 8', you could make the face of the new detached garage also 8', then raise the plate line to 10' maybe 4' back from the face. Something simple like this might help the detached garage better blend in with the existing garage and the other roof lines on the house, however, this assumes that you can live with standard height garage doors on the detached garage...

Matching the roof pitch of the existing garage would also help the detached garage blend in better.

In my experience, 5 - 7 years can pretty easily stretch into 20+... which is a long time to go without the garage space that you want. If you can truly build a detached garage for $15K... that is a heck of a deal with a lot of sweat equity. Under those circumstances, I'd guess that it'd be a fine investment; there's always someone that is looking for extra garage space.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I wouldn't necessarily blow out the entire abutting wall if you built an adjoining garage. I'd simply put either a 4' opening or fame in for a 36" to separate the two spaces.

 

[Shoester]

A 24x30x10 workshop a few feet from the house that you "love" sounds pretty sweet.

What kind of garage door layout are you considering? Something that matches the house and faces the street? Exactly. My existing garage door is typical 16x8, but I am considering an 18x9 for the new garage...my only concern being that it won't do any good for helping the new garage blend in. I may just have to **** it up and put a 16x8 in.

From the pic of your house and the arial view it appears that there are several interesting roof lines on the house. You might be able to take advantage of this to create the illusion of a smaller street facing garage facade. Assuming the plate line of your existing garage is 8', you could make the face of the new detached garage also 8', then raise the plate line to 10' maybe 4' back from the face. Something simple like this might help the detached garage better blend in with the existing garage and the other roof lines on the house, however, this assumes that you can live with standard height garage doors on the detached garage... I like this idea and I will play around in Sketchup to see what it looks like. Although, the existing plate line is actually 10' so I will have to see how that works out.

Matching the roof pitch of the existing garage would also help the detached garage blend in better. Good point. Existing pitch is 10/12, so it's not going to be fun roofing, but this does give me considerably more room with the Attic trusses versus an 8/12.

In my experience, 5 - 7 years can pretty easily stretch into 20+... which is a long time to go without the garage space that you want. If you can truly build a detached garage for $15K... that is a heck of a deal with a lot of sweat equity. Under those circumstances, I'd guess that it'd be a fine investment; there's always someone that is looking for extra garage space. A good point indeed, who really knows how long I will be here and it really depends on how the market does. Obviously if I do leave, I would like it to be favorable financially. I've done a detailed estimate on the garage and I truly do believe I can do it for a maximum of $15k. My big-boy day job is in the commercial/industrial construction industry as a Project Controls manager, and I've done a stint in estimating large commercial buildings as well, so I feel confident that I'm not overlooking too much in the cost.

Comments in bold!

 

[Falcon67]

IF -if- you think that you would be selling and moving in a few years, it's probably better to think about a medium size portable. Or hiring an architect to try and integrate the space into the existing structure. That selling deal is tricky - overbuild the neighborhood in sq/ft and it'll reduce your possible return.

I agree on the next lot purchase - nothing like having a larger foot print to work with. $29K is nuts for a lot, but then I could probably buy a city block in Merkel for that. 122 acres on the north edge of town is asking $150K.

 

[Shoester]

IF -if- you think that you would be selling and moving in a few years, it's probably better to think about a medium size portable. Or hiring an architect to try and integrate the space into the existing structure. That selling deal is tricky - overbuild the neighborhood in sq/ft and it'll reduce your possible return.

I agree on the next lot purchase - nothing like having a larger foot print to work with. $29K is nuts for a lot, but then I could probably buy a city block in Merkel for that. 122 acres on the north edge of town is asking $150K.

122 acres for $150k?!

Around here, an acre averages $5-7k!


That's where my problem lies...how long do I realistically have to wait to own my dream property...and can I go that long without a shop? I know these are questions you guys can't answer, but it helps to get some outside perspective.

 

[Voi]

That's where my problem lies...how long do I realistically have to wait to own my dream property...and can I go that long without a shop? I know these are questions you guys can't answer, but it helps to get some outside perspective.

Tough call. My wife and I bought a fixer upper ten years ago and did a fairly extensive remodel. During that time our income increased much more than expected and there is a part of us that wishes we had put our money into a different property. It's not that we'd lose money if we sold our house now it's just that we put a lot of energy into it and really like it. We do have an over sized three car and plenty of room to park outside but even my wife wishes the garage was much bigger. We have 1.5 acres but the only logical place to add a shop is where our leach field is.

Looking at your situation, do you have any idea what your ROI will be on the 15K in seven years? Would it even be 50%?

If it was and you don't finance the extra garage that would be like $90 per month over the next seven years for the $7500 you wouldn't get back. That's not that bad.

Now that aside and looking at your current property, if I owned that and needed more garage space I'd want my money to go towards attached parking space. Can you add on to the south and maybe put on a three car that is attached to the front of the current 18 x 20?