Right at the top of the requirements in
Barry Rivlin's purchase of a home two years
ago was a three-car garage.
Although he is single and did not
require a big house, he wanted that
garage space for his two cars, his motorcycle,
and other storage. He also told
his Realtor that he thought a larger
garage would be a benefit when the
time comes to sell the home. He's not
alone. A three-car garage increasingly is
a minimum requirement for many
homebuyers.
Rivlin owned homes in the area
before and always had garage space
either a three-car garage or a two-car
garage with plenty of extra space. Rivlin
found his house and says he's satisfied
with the space he has with the three-car
garage. He isn't wishing he had more
space because he says, "The more you
have, the more you fill it up."
For Tracy Tomlinson Carroll, a threecar
garage was one of the most important
criteria while shopping for a home
to purchase with her parents, Jim and
Betty Toth, in 1993. When she recently
married Brian Carroll, garage space
remained just as important. Her parents
moved to another home, but she and her
husband collect classic automobiles and
need the space to store the valuable cars.
The home they purchased in 1993 is on
a corner lot and has around 2,600 square
feet of living space. Other homes of the
same size in the neighborhood have twocar
garages and that, in her view, is just not
sufficient for her lifestyle. The home has a
single door to one garage, and a double
door to the others.
"We've looked at houses as we want some-
house that has 3,000 to 3300 square feet
or more probably should have at least a
four-car-garage.
Carolyn Hird, an agent with Dickson
Realty, says that it's far more common these
days for buyers to look for a home with a
three-car garage.
"People have more cars and toys, and they
need more storage and they also consider the
resale value," Hird says.
She says she currently has two clients
looking for homes with the advantage of
a three-car-garage. One buyer is shopping
in the $400,000 to $500,000 range.
The family of five husband, wife and
three children is active in sports, has
bikes and skis and is more concerned
about storage for these toys than space
for a third car.
The other client has three automobiles,
but wants the third garage for use for a
hobby that involves metal welding and
sculpting. Hird says the client has indicated
that one car might be left outdoors.
The price range for this client is in the
$500,000 to $600,000 bracket.
Older homes with more garage space,
Hird says, are scarce but this depends on location.
In some outlying areas where there is
more property, she finds more garage or storage
space, or room to add on particularly
where there is or has been horse property.
She says she has not seen a huge demand
for more than three-car-garage space, but
recently had a customer who wanted four
garages, and they found a home with a twocar
garage, and a separate two-car garage.
Hird says she can see in the future
maybe 10 years out where people will
want more garage space because not only
do the baby boomers have more cars and
toys, but more and more homes feature inlaw
quarters in which there are more cars
to take car of.
Michael Adams, vice-president sales and
marketing for Silver Star Development, says
that there are two upcoming developments
for the company. One features homes from
1,600 to 2,100 square feet and another with
homes from 2,300 to 2,900 square-feet. The
smaller homes will have the two-car garages,
and the larger will have three-car garages.
Adams says that another type of
garage they will feature has a tandem
design. From the front it looks like a twocar
garage, but one side is deep enough to
hold a second car, or provide the extra
storage that people are looking for.
"This really fits nicely on some footprints
of a home. This works well if you
have a narrow lot," he says.
The company is currently marketing
Chantalaine in Arrowcreek, homes that
range in size from 3,000 to 5,360 square
feet, and all feature three-car garages
some with a single door, and others with
a double door. These homes are designed
so that no garage doors face the street.
Adams says that the decision regarding
garage space in production homes
depends upon the market the builder is
going after. Empty nesters may not want
a three-car garage whereas young families
have more requirements.
"People want that extra garage space
for their toys. People have skis and offroad
vehicles, jet skis, golf clubs,"
Adams says. When it comes to custom
homes, the demand for extra garage
space is all over the place. Dennis Banks
of Dennis Banks Construction says that
his firm recently finished a home with a
16-car garage about 4,500 square
feet. The house itself was 7,000 square
feet. The owner had cars, motorcycles,
and other equipment.
Another custom project by Banks
was a 4,000-square-foot gym/garage
large enough for a full-sized basketball
court and batting cages.
"Almost all homeowners these days
have their toys, and there is never
enough storage so we virtually see no
two-car-garages anymore in the custom
market. Anything over 2,000 square feet
will have a three-car garage. If a person
has a lot of toys, he or she is going to
need a larger track home or a custom
home," Banks says.
Providing garage doors for custom
homes is the business of Dave Rogers,
owner of The Door Man in Reno. Rogers
says that he recently provided four singlegarage
doors for a custom home of around
5,000 square feet. This home is in the
Juniper Hills area, with a carriage house
design and these were custom doors.
Another recent project for Rogers is a
home with garages for three cars actually
a two-car garage with single doors on
a cottage, and the main house with a single
garage door. The cottage was for
guests and is over the two garages.
With cars and toys and in-laws and
other factors such as hobbies and grown
children returning home, it's apparent
that the three-car garage is here to stay.
The questions are these: Will the
demand for even more space gain in
popularity, and how will builders and
designers handle the challenge of meeting
the needs and desires of the all-
important buyer?
