GARAGE CONVERSIONS IN MELBOURNE

Email us today on info@elitehomesandrenovations.com.au

 

A garage conversion can be a great way to add space to your Melbourne home. Garages can be relatively easy and cost-effective to convert when compared to other home improvement options, such as loft conversions or a rear extension, which require much more difficult to obtain, especially in Victoria, council permits, engineering certificates, planning approvals, soil tests, the approval of neighbours and a raft of other hurdles to jump through.

 

When converted, a garage can make a great living space

While garages can often be long and narrow, they can also be prodigious living spaces, especially when opened up to the rest of the house as part of a reconfiguration of the ground floor.

 

Converting your garage can completely change how you use your home or office, and offer you the space you need, whether it’s to accommodate a growing family, create a home office, a hobby room, a gym or an extra bedroom.

At Simply Extend, we work all over Melbourne, and we can help you convert your garage if you live in:

• Melbourne inner suburbs
• Melbourne’s outer East
• Melbourne’s inner East
• Melbourne’s outer Sth East
• Melbourne’s inner Sth East
• Melbourne’s northern suburbs
• Melbourne’s western suburbs

 

As a garage conversion company, we offer a free, no-obligation, site survey, so we can understand what you want to achieve from a garage conversion with the budget available. Email us today on info@elitehomesandrenovations.com.au

 

Why convert your garage?

 

There are many reasons to convert a garage. From needing extra space to house your growing family to creating your dream kitchen or having a special area to call your own. Each homeowner has their own reasons for evicting the garden tools and junk that a garage accumulates. According to data provided in 2018, only 9% of household vehicles were parked overnight in a garage.

 

So, the vast majority of homeowners don’t even use their garage for its intended purpose. Also, a garage conversion can add up to 20% to the value of your home. However, it is advisable to check the current ceiling prices of similar properties in your area before undertaking home improvement work as an investment.

 

Within reason, there are several things you can do with your garage conversion. Here are our top garage conversion ideas:

Create an open plan living space

 

Combine your kitchen, living and dining room to make a beautiful desirable space that will give your home a sense of flow, bring in more natural light and allow you to connect to the garden. Popular with homeowners, open plan living is a great way to create an indoor-outdoor space that brings you closer to your outside space.

This kind of space can be created by removing walls and, if needed, reconfiguring your downstairs space, then combine with floor to ceiling windows and bi-folding doors for an amazing space that brings the outdoors in.

Give your hobbies or toys some space where they are protected

 

If you are passionate about a certain hobby, then creating a dedicated zone just for it may be a dream come true. Whether you want a room to house your train set, a man cave, reading room, yoga room, gym or a workshop for art or a craft you love, then converting your garage space may be the right move for you. The advantages to converting your garage space to a hobby room includes:

• Any kit you need for your hobby is kept out of the way of more communal/family spaces
• You have your own space to retreat to
• The space your garage offers may be just what you need, and you won’t have to undertake large building works, such as removing walls
• Sometimes keeping your tools and other items inside, protected and locked away is more important than keeping your car undercover

 

Home office conversion Melbourne

 

With more and more people working from home over the past 12 months it has become increasingly important to have a home office.

 

If you need a home office, studio or workshop, then your garage may be the perfect option. Depending on the type of garage you have, you may be able to create a self-contained space, which could have its own entrance. This can be ideal if you need to receive clients or work-related visitors to your house but want to keep your work separate from your home.

Playroom conversion Melbourne

 

If your family is growing, then using the space offered by your garage to create a playroom for your children can make a big difference. Anyone who is a parent will know that toys only multiply and having somewhere where you can shut the door on the mess and the noise can be a godsend. Also, as the children get older, their playroom can be used as a place to do homework and hang out with friends.

Double-storey garage conversion Melbourne

 

If you want to go the whole hog, then why not opt for a double story garage conversion? This gives you the option to create the space you need at ground level as well as add an extra bedroom or an upstairs bathroom, or both if the space is available. Double-storey garages will take longer to convert, are likely to need planning permission and will be more expensive than a single storey garage conversion, however, the space you gain may make a huge difference to your home life.

 

At Elite Homes and Renovations, we are garage conversion specialists and can advise you on the right approach for what you want to achieve.

Do you need planning permission for a garage conversion in Melbourne?

Generally, a garage conversion should fall under permitted development, which should mean that planning permission is not required. However, there may be instances where you will have to apply for planning permission or a change of use.

Before going full steam ahead with a garage conversion on at your home, check if there are any planning conditions or restrictive covenants on your house with regards to converting the garage. Some housing estates or individual houses may come with planning conditions attached to the property. For example, your title deeds may have restrictive covenants, which may prevent garage conversions. If you are unsure what any covenants on your property mean, then seek legal advice from a property solicitor.

If you want to convert a detached garage into some form of residential accommodation or a home office, you may need to apply for change of use. Again, it is worth checking with your planning department or council, to ensure that any conversion you wish to undertake is legal.

How much does a garage conversion cost?

How much your garage conversion will cost in Melbourne, will be dependent on several factors such. However, a garage conversion is much, much cheaper than doing an extension. Some of those price determining factors include:

• The size of the garage
• Whether you are converting a single or double-storey garage
• Whether you plan on removing walls or other structural changes
• Reconfiguring the downstairs layout
• The materials you wish to use
• Adding plaster to walls
• Adding electrical points and other things of that nature including changes to lighting

 

Garage conversion experts in Melbourne

As garage conversion experts in Melbourne we know what to look out for, and we can help you make the most of the space you have in your home.  We offer fixed priced garage conversions that include planning, project management, build and aftercare.

If you want to transform your home with a garage conversion, contact our garage conversion specialists today for a free site survey.