Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Texas > Houston
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 10-17-2018, 08:11 AM
 
218 posts, read 222,310 times
Reputation: 179

Advertisements

I have a 5,600 sq ft lot, with about 600 sq ft to build on. Does it make sense to build a 2-story structure here with a 2-car garage on the lower level and a 1-bedroom apartment to rent out on the upper level?

The quotes I'm getting are around $100k (which I would finance), and I'm estimating monthly rent to be $1,300 for the 1-bedroom apartment (this would include one of the two parking spaces in the garage). Of course, my property tax would go up since the appraised value of the home would increase if we were to build this, as well my homeowner's insurance going up.

There is currently no garage parking at my house.

Do folks these days actually build new garage apartments? I know there are tons of them out there that are rented out, but I suppose a lot of these are older construction that came with the house when it was purchased by the current owners.

Thoughts?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 10-17-2018, 08:47 AM
 
Location: In your head, rent free
14,888 posts, read 9,976,934 times
Reputation: 7691
Are you talking about building a split level 1BR above a garage/parking space or do you mean a larger 1BR with split living space on 2 floors? Have you looked into permitting from the COH? $100K seems a little light for building a split level structure in the city (doing everything according to regulation).
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-17-2018, 08:51 AM
 
218 posts, read 222,310 times
Reputation: 179
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheMoreYouKnow View Post
Are you talking about building a split level 1BR above a garage/parking space or do you mean a larger 1BR with split living space on 2 floors? Have you looked into permitting from the COH? $100K seems a little light for building a split level structure in the city (doing everything according to regulation).
The former.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-17-2018, 08:55 AM
 
Location: In your head, rent free
14,888 posts, read 9,976,934 times
Reputation: 7691
Quote:
Originally Posted by clutchcity View Post
The former.
If the finances make sense I'd jump on that in a heartbeat, as long as you're willing to put up with the rental property BS that comes along with owning a rental.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-17-2018, 08:58 AM
 
218 posts, read 222,310 times
Reputation: 179
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheMoreYouKnow View Post
If the finances make sense I'd jump on that in a heartbeat, as long as you're willing to put up with the rental property BS that comes along with owning a rental.
The other wrinkle to all this is that there is an existing structure on that 600 sq ft piece of land, so I'd need to demolish it. It's a single story former garage that was converted to an apartment decades ago. Nothing in there is really salvageable, so I'd rather demo it and start fresh. The problem is that the demo quotes I've been getting are really high (about $8k).
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-17-2018, 09:49 AM
 
1,045 posts, read 2,144,180 times
Reputation: 909
I would make it a 2 story living space with more sq ft. Or just make it a one car garage with living space downstairs and and have the tenat park on the street.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-17-2018, 10:00 AM
 
218 posts, read 222,310 times
Reputation: 179
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Krinkle View Post
I would make it a 2 story living space with more sq ft. Or just make it a one car garage with living space downstairs and and have the tenat park on the street.
Would you go 1-bed/1-bath or 2-bed/1-bath?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-17-2018, 12:28 PM
 
Location: In your head, rent free
14,888 posts, read 9,976,934 times
Reputation: 7691
Quote:
Originally Posted by clutchcity View Post
Would you go 1-bed/1-bath or 2-bed/1-bath?
That depends on if you've got the space for 2 baths in your design. It seems like your area would be prime for a 2/2 in a roommate situation, I'm sure a 2/1 would rent but adult roommates will pay extra to not share a bathroom and parents sharing a bedroom with a kid in the second bedroom aren't going to pay as much as 2 adults with their own bedrooms and bathrooms. Can you fit a 2/2 and tuck a small laundry space downstairs in the garage area maybe?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-17-2018, 01:54 PM
 
860 posts, read 1,575,729 times
Reputation: 760
Yes, folks are still putting up new garage apartments in the Greater Houston area. One couple I know built their garage apartment first and lived in it while their new $million-plus home was under construction. It's now used as guest quarters. There's a young family in my neighborhood who are living in their new-build garage apartment while the main house is being remodeled. When they move back into their home, the apartment will be rented to a college student. Two friends -- one an artist, the other an architect -- recently built "casita" type garage apartments behind their homes to use as studios.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 10-18-2018, 09:21 AM
 
1,416 posts, read 4,421,305 times
Reputation: 1128
Check out Harvard Heights, they build a lot of the new garage apartments in the Heights, and can help you run the numbers. Yes, it could prove to be cash flow positive. You are also in an area that is popular for short-term/AirBnB style rentals, which is likely even more cash flow positive (especially if you want to use that space for your own guests from time to time).

https://www.harvardheights.com/
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram

Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Texas > Houston
View detailed profiles of:

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top