Garage? Can I live in it?

[Ben88]

Afternoon,

I have tried searching for information about this but I have come up short. If you know of a forum please let me know.

I own a house with a friend, we both live in it with two flatmates. I have build two budget walls in the garage to make a small "room". The garage is not attached to the house. I am wanting to live in there so I can get someone in my room to help with the rent. Is this legal? I could pull the walls down if it was an issue in about 20 minutes if needed.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

[Davo36]

It's probably not legal, but done all the time.

Do you really want to live in a garage though?

[Ben88]

What would happen? I don't mind living in the garage. I will only sleep in there and if I can get more income to pay more mortgage that helps.

[jimO]

dont see why not, its no different from a sleepout

[Glizzle]

Pitch a tent and rent the garage out.

[mrsaneperson]

Afternoon,

I have tried searching for information about this but I have come up short. If you know of a forum please let me know.

I own a house with a friend, we both live in it with two flatmates. I have build two budget walls in the garage to make a small "room". The garage is not attached to the house. I am wanting to live in there so I can get someone in my room to help with the rent. Is this legal? I could pull the walls down if it was an issue in about 20 minutes if needed.

Any ideas?

Thanks.

I did this myself many years ago in the first property i owned,dividing up the back of a very large double garage into 3 rooms then insulating the walls & laid carpet etc. Its called a sleepout. As long as you have a permit for the actual building itself ,it is perfectly legal. The kitchen , shower & toilet arrangements i continued to use from the house.

[mrsaneperson]

It's probably not legal, but done all the time.

Do you really want to live in a garage though?

There you go again !

And if you read his first post he states the reason for wanting to live in the garage. Get with the plan Davo.

[Ben88]

Pitch a tent and rent the garage out.

I have considered that! haha tents are more expensive than my garage wall!

[Ben88]

I did this myself many years ago in the first property i owned,dividing up the back of a very large double garage into 3 rooms then insulating the walls & laid carpet etc. Its called a sleepout. As long as you have a permit for the actual building itself ,it is perfectly legal. The kitchen , shower & toilet arrangements i continued to use from the house.

Do you know if there would be any issues with insurance? I'm assuming people in the garage will have there own contents insurance.

[mrsaneperson]

Do you know if there would be any issues with insurance? I'm assuming people in the garage will have there own contents insurance.

I never bothered with contents insurance only house insurance.Generally speaking insurance companies will cover the building insurance for minor outbuildings less than 60 sq metres under the 1 house policy and make them aware that its a sleepout facility .As long as there are no cooking facilities the risk factor remains low. Hope the garage is insulated as it will be darn cold this weather.I also put ornamental security grills on the inside window frames & some deadbolts on doors, being an outbuilding there is more burglary risk associated .At a later date i replaced the draughty window shutters with proper aluminium windows.

[Davo36]

There you go again !

And if you read his first post he states the reason for wanting to live in the garage. Get with the plan Davo.

Mate, you're sooooo sure you're right on all of this. So sure that you're telling me I'm being silly etc.

Well I can tell you, you are wrong on most of this, especially the granny flat issues. Now it might come back to bite you on the bum which I don't care about since you're such a righteous prick, but you are giving terrible advice to others on this forum.

I did see why he wanted to live in the garage. But I was asking him to think this through. If you read my post (instead of just skimming over it in your zealous "I am right" way), you'd see that. What's the use in owning a house if you can't afford to live in it? Perhaps it would be a better move to sell the house and buy again when finances are better?

Come on, tell me I'm wrong, blah blah blah, living in a garage is a wonderful experience blah blah blah.

[mrsaneperson]

Mate, you're sooooo sure you're right on all of this. So sure that you're telling me I'm being silly etc.

Well I can tell you, you are wrong on most of this, especially the granny flat issues. Now it might come back to bite you on the bum which I don't care about since you're such a righteous prick, but you are giving terrible advice to others on this forum.

I did see why he wanted to live in the garage. But I was asking him to think this through. If you read my post (instead of just skimming over it in your zealous "I am right" way), you'd see that. What's the use in owning a house if you can't afford to live in it? Perhaps it would be a better move to sell the house and buy again when finances are better?

Come on, tell me I'm wrong, blah blah blah, living in a garage is a wonderful experience blah blah blah.

He already stated why he wanted to live in the garage .Why ask "why on earth would anyone live in the garage". Hes doing this to generate extra revenue to cover his mortgage. Its a practical move ,one that im familiar with . Its actually fine living in a sleepout arrangement as long as its insulated ,in fact i preferred it because there was more privacy & generally less intrusion compared to residing in the house.On the "Granny flat" issue Davo "put up or shut up" , i have asked you in the other thread to post me examples where council have stated that only family members may reside in the Granny flat dwelling & then taken action to remove non family members. So far you are all talk & misinformation, and i might have burst your bubble, so that is why you're behaving badly. Each & every situation can be very different & that is a critical point you are missing.

[eri]

Davo speaks as 1 who has successfully fought city hall

and he advises not to needlessly fight them

you seem to be advising people to break laws first and then seek exemptions later

dangerous game

has it worked for you?

because it has been a very expensive game for many here

[mrsaneperson]

Davo speaks as 1 who has successfully fought city hall

and he advises not to needlessly fight them

you seem to be advising people to break laws first and then seek exemptions later

dangerous game

has it worked for you?

because it has been a very expensive game for many here

Perhaps ,but not for the exact situation that this thread is centred around.If he has then he would have already stated the specifics of his own experience relating to exactly the same situation of this thread . He has not done so. Instead he has been quite irrational & attacking me personally. Each & every situation is different.Something that he hasn't taken onboard.I have advised no one to break laws,nor have i advocated to do so , all i have stated is backed up from my own experience & knowledge throughout my many years in the industry.I lived in a sleepout for quite a few years & had flatmates in my house, all perfectly legal & above board.If Davo wants to criticise the original poster because he thinks no one should live in a sleepout in order to increase rental return then that is his own downfall & conceited approach. He's welcome to post his opinion but should stop slanging off people because they dont agree with him.

[eri]

If he has then he would have already stated the specifics of his own experience relating to exactly the same situation of this thread . He has not done so.

why should he state the specifics of his case here?

because you demand it?

we'd all be awfully busy if we had to do what others demanded

have you tried searching for it?

it's very educational

could be useful

and far too long to endlessly type out for those who would rather have it presented to them, on demand