What should I replace my garage with?

[Four Pillars]

I have a garage problem and I was hoping to get some feedback from the bright minds in the forum. The rest of you are welcome to chip in as well.

I live in an older downtownish Toronto house which has a laneway in the back. There is a garage off the laneway which is a complete POS (piece of sh**). We park on the street (which is our preference) and just use the garage for storage.

Ideally I would like to just keep patching it up, however our insurance company has other ideas. Our last insurance company dropped us because of the garage. Bottom line is that the garage must come down.

The question is what to replace it with.

From a resale point of view, it would be nice to put in a proper garage, but that would be quite expensive and we will just use it as a storage shed. We have no plans to move any time in the near (or far) future. One thing about resale value is that a lot of people just want a place to park (which they would have) - a garage would be a bonus.

I'm thinking we might investigate putting in a bare-bones modern version of our old garage which would cost some $$, but hopefully not too bad. In other words, a wood structure with a proper roof/windows/door etc that will continue to be used as a storage shed, but a new owner could convert easily to a car garage.

Another alternative is to look into getting a shed or two. I don't know anything about them.

Another consideration is that there is a big tree between our garage and our neighbour's garage. I love the limited shade it gives, but I'm thinking it might be better to come down.

I don't have a specific question about this issue, but if anyone has any info/advice about garages/sheds etc, I'd love to hear it.

Actually - one specific question is how much it would cost to have it taken down and disposed of - the dimensions are 11 feet wide and 24 feet long. We would leave the concrete floor as is. Most the structure is wood, but the bottom 2? feet are cinderblocks.

[Cal]

Not sure on the size of the house, or the tree beside the garage. But to throw out an idea. You could rebuild the garage with a small loft above. Then you could offer a perspective buyer parking and storage.

Assuming you are leaving the cement pad, it really shouldn't cost that much to rebuild.

[Four Pillars]

Not sure on the size of the house, or the tree beside the garage. But to throw out an idea. You could rebuild the garage with a small loft above. Then you could offer a perspective buyer parking and storage.

Assuming you are leaving the cement pad, it really shouldn't cost that much to rebuild.

Garage with a loft is a pretty good idea. I'm not sure about the cost however - garages are not cheap, especially if they are built to code. I'm thinking that a nice garage is probably $30k, $40k which is not what I want to spend.

I should mention that the concrete pad is not in good shape at all. If we are going to do the "nice" garage approach, that would involve removing the existing pad.

The other thing is that there is a very good chance we will live here for a long time, so paying a lot of money for a garage because of resale value might not make a lot of sense.

[Cal]

Single or Double car garage?

[Four Pillars]

Single ( 11 feet wide ).

[marina628]

One thing you should check is if you remove the garage can the next owner rebuild it. My friend had a clause on her house which was very old in Toronto that if garage was removed they could not rebuild it.They had to rebuild from inside out ,could not even take it down then rebuild it.

[Four Pillars]

One thing you should check is if you remove the garage can the next owner rebuild it. My friend had a clause on her house which was very old in Toronto that if garage was removed they could not rebuild it.They had to rebuild from inside out ,could not even take it down then rebuild it.

That's actually a bit of an urban myth. I've heard that from plenty of people and it just isn't true.

Perhaps if you want to rebuild your garage without a permit, then doing it one wall at a time is one way to do it, but if you want to tear it completely down and rebuild - that is allowed.

[donald]

What about taking it down and creating a "parking" space with hardscaping.Would cost 1/2 of what a new garage would cost and it would upgrade your back-yard.Maybe frame the parking pad with old rustic railwood ties/granite rock or cement it with coloured concrete/stamped concrete and you could pave a path way to your back door....You could always build a carport-done right it could enhance(cedar ect)....Basically take down the garage and focus on custom hardscaping/landscaping(renovate the backyard as a total package),you could spend 20k and it will look like you spent thifty-five-and it would be a nice space for entertaining if you hangout in your backyard with friend a lot.

[donald]

Half the price of a new garage and throw a shed in the backyard for storage.As far as removing disposing the old garage,all you need is a group of friend,sweet equity,beer,steaks and a or whatever(easy to take down-need 1 guy that might need to have alittle skill with a skill saw or recip saw,cro bars.Rent a bfi bin for the day for drop off(300 hun to 400 hun)and hire a landscaper for the rest.

[Four Pillars]

What about taking it down and creating a "parking" space with hardscaping.Would cost 1/2 of what a new garage would cost and it would upgrade your back-yard.Maybe frame the parking pad with old rustic railwood ties/granite rock or cement it with coloured concrete/stamped concrete and you could pave a path way to your back door....You could always build a carport-done right it could enhance(cedar ect)....Basically take down the garage and focus on custom hardscaping/landscaping(renovate the backyard as a total package),you could spend 20k and it will look like you spent thifty-five-and it would be a nice space for entertaining if you hangout in your backyard with friend a lot.

That sounds like the nicest parking space in T.O.!

The problem is that we don't use that space for parking and we aren't selling.

However if we do ever sell - I think that is a fantastic, cost efficient idea.