What is the obsession with detached garages (Houston, San Antonio: homeowners insurance, crime rate)

[NTT]

You like attached, he/she likes detached. Nothing is wrong with either one of you nor the garage location. Otherwise, the builders wouldn't be able to sell any of the particular design. Each design has its own pros and cons, depending on what is our main purposes for using the garage. As some of you already said, to each his/her own.

Now, to say that you are wrong because you like it this way and not that way, that is just... polically incorrect!

[Shizzles]

A nice compromise would be to have the garages off to the side of the house with the driveway off to the side as well. Either that, or maybe go for adding back alleys for the garages. They make good places also for garbage collection and to hide utilites.

[DejaBlue]

I'm a bugaphobe.

Bugs LIVE in garages. Attached garages just let them come the hell in your house.

Detach garages are the best. A house should be it's own standing unit. Not a garage and two ugly doors taking away the aesthetic look of a house. Attache garages make you look at garage before you focus on the house. I like having a longer driveway so if cars are in the driveway they don't block the house or look trashy. Plus, it gives people somewhere to park. Attached garage people always seem to have the most company over and they are usually lining up the streets and/or parked in front of a house and in front of someone else's driveway.

It's a HOUSE not a garage. This is Houston not snow central. The weather we have isn't that horrid for walking from the garage to the house. It's some exercise since people always say house fat Houston is. Walk your butt from the garage to the house.

Even if I lived in a cold, snowy place, I wouldn't rest until I get a detached garage. Bugs! Hell no.

[Sunderpig2]

Hmm. I grew up with a detached garage, and find it infinitely more preferable to the ugly eyesore Garage-in-Front-in-All-Its-Glory approach.

The home should be emphasized, so that's reason enough, in my opinion. Another benefit is that garages are typically not air-conditioned. So you have a large room of hot trapped air sitting on the side of the house, which adds heat to the house compared to having open/circulated air instead.

You can use the detached garage for noisier things (bands, workshop, etc.) with less effect on the house and living. Worse case, if the house burns, the garage can often be saved, or vice versa. Might sound extreme, but it can help.

[bluelion_ms3]

i would only like a detached garage if i had a breezeway built going to and from the house....someone mentioned that Houston isn't snow central and what not, but here in houston, it rains A LOT....and i don't like running to my car in the rain and trying to get in with minimal water getting in my car. one downside to consider with a detached garage, is it can be more prone to burglary. it's easier to break into a building through a standard door rather than a two car garage door. the two houses i lived in with detached garages, both had the garages broken into to steal lawn equipment.....

[EasilyAmused]

I love them. It allows you space to put a nice electric driveway gate up. Most have a covered walkway to the back door, and I've had any problem with the weather with them.Also adds an addition space buffer from the neighbors. After living in both styles, I think being detached actually keeps the house cooler than attached, and it certainly keeps wafts of fertilizer from coming into the house when the door opens..

The garage in the front is horrible IMHO."Welcome to my garage." I know why builders do it though, so they can slam houses closer and on smaller lots. Garage on the side works only if your lot is wide enough to back out or swing in. And in new neighborhoods they don't like to give wider lots to standard builds. Still for me, I think it's best to keep all the heat and chemicals that build up in the garage away from the home.I love how some people make the detached look like stable/carriage house in certain neighborhoods.

[d2mini]

The best case scenario IMHO is a single car garage facing the street with a two car garage turned 90 degrees.
Looks like we are going to end up with a 3 car tandem, which works for me since I only need the third spot for man-toy storage.

[TimBomb]

Originally Posted by d2mini

The best case scenario IMHO is a single car garage facing the street with a two car garage turned 90 degrees.
Looks like we are going to end up with a 3 car tandem, which works for me since I only need the third spot for man-toy storage.

I'd add that the 'single car' garage have another door going to the backyard. If you finish it nicely it can double as a food serving area for backyard parties

[elnina]

Many break ins into the house are made from the garage.
Attached garage also can be a household energy drain, especially if there's minimal insulation between the home and the garage.

[Mustang1]

Much prefer the detached garage