Anyone rent a garage?

[JasonK]

My wife and i are looking at a house here in Kansas. There happens to be two garages, a 24x24 and a 24x30. The larger one has it's own meter. What do you suppose if i was to rent it out, it would go for? Right now it rents for 100.00 a month, but I'm thinking someone would pay closer to 200.00 for something like that.....

 

[OldCarGuy]

I don't know the rates in your area. But in Ohio, and that big, it my demand up to $300.00 a month.

 

[5wndwcpe]

I don't know the rates in your area. But in Ohio, and that big, it my demand up to $300.00 a month.

Same here, maybe even a little more. That's not including the electric either.

 

[SWA Guy]

I have a 10 x 30 storage room at a local generic storage facility near Sacramento. I pay $175/mo for it. There is another renter there that has eight (8!) of them that he uses for everything you could imagine. He has all of his machine and metal working tools there and He even rebuilds motorcycles inside one of them. I'm guessing he spends around $1,200 a month. In this area I think you could get at least $300 for it, probably more.

 

[Junkman]

Just keep in mind that being a landlord has its own set of problems. If you get a good tenant, that is great. If you get some deadbeat that fills the space with junk, and leaves, it is your headache to get rid of the junk. In some jurisdictions, you can't just heave it, but have to have it sold at public auction. Many things to think about when renting property. What if the renter gets hurt? Will your homeowners insurance cover you? I doubt it, so that is one hidden expense that you have to think about. I am not saying not to do it, I am saying that you have to cover yourself for all potential problems. I have heard of people renting garages, and then they start to live out of them. Cheaper than renting an apartment.

 

[gahi]

I think I could fill two garages with no problems.

 

[jimvannoy]

I have been down the rental road. I use to own a house that I rented out. It was a nice 3BR 2b with shop and garage. It was no problem to keep it occupied the problem was collecting rent. Several times near the end of the month/rent due time people would move out and leave the place trashed. I always made them pay a deposit and the first month rent up front so at least I was not out rent but was stuck with a mess and broken stuff all the time. I am talking stuff like holes in walls, doors broken off hinges, busted windows, etc. The shop had a built in workbench with a nice top. Renters would drill holes in it to mount stuff, cut things on it and cut the top, paint on it and get paint everywhere. In the garage there would be big oil spills from leaking cars or engines that were pulled or stored in a corner. The house had a deck and screened in porch. The porch would have torn screen, the deck and yard would be trashed from people with dogs even though I stated no pets. I also had insurance to cover the house in case they burned it down or if they got hurt and tried to sue me. I finally sold the house after a few years of trying to deal with it.

If it's just a garage and it's on the same property where you live you might be able to keep an eye on it and keep stuff in line better though.

 

[OctaneMotorsports]

I would rent a decent sized garage for $200/month in a second.

 

[wrigh003]

I don't think I could deal with somebody I don't know personally coming and going on my property. Little shifty for my tastes, but that's me. Junkman's onto something with the liability pointer, too- there's a lot (a lot a LOT) of things that could go wrong working on stuff around the shop, and I'd rather just skip that whole set of bad possibilities.

If a family member wanted to store their boat or something, I'd rent it to them for occasional use of said boat, but to a stranger for cash? I'll pass.