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.
We made our first recon trip up the So. NH last month, and finally have a 'feel' for the differences between some of the towns. No two ways about it -- we fell hard for the Amherst area.
We're still planning to move next summer, but we're starting to look a tad harder at real estate offerings now, w/ plans to buy anytime between now and then if that 'perfect something' hits the market.
That said -- some of the homes I see out there currently appeal enormously for various reasons, but some have barns rather than garages. And some have nothing but "parking spaces" (and neither garage nor barn).
I can't image having a place there w/out somewhere out of the weather for the cars. Do people actually make this work?
Would you prefer a barn or a garage?
Finally -- We're hoping for space for 2 cars plus storage (snowblower, etc), and ideally we'd have space above to convert to an office. If there were a place we fell in love with and HAD to have, but it needed a garage/barn, how much do you think it might cost to build one?
We made our first recon trip up the So. NH last month, and finally have a 'feel' for the differences between some of the towns. No two ways about it -- we fell hard for the Amherst area.
We're still planning to move next summer, but we're starting to look a tad harder at real estate offerings now, w/ plans to buy anytime between now and then if that 'perfect something' hits the market.
That said -- some of the homes I see out there currently appeal enormously for various reasons, but some have barns rather than garages. And some have nothing but "parking spaces" (and neither garage nor barn).
I can't image having a place there w/out somewhere out of the weather for the cars. Do people actually make this work?
Would you prefer a barn or a garage?
Finally -- We're hoping for space for 2 cars plus storage (snowblower, etc), and ideally we'd have space above to convert to an office. If there were a place we fell in love with and HAD to have, but it needed a garage/barn, how much do you think it might cost to build one?
Yes, people actually make it work. Many people get temporary structures (they look like little plastic/fabric huts) that they can pull there cars into for the winter, others just wake early to clean off the car, yet others have carports. A garage was a must for us...
As for the barn/garage question- a barn that stores cars...is a garage; so I want a garage since I'm not a farmer. What I prefer is a garage that is large enough for vehicles (with plenty of room to get around them to do maintenance at home) and plenty of extra room to be able to store the tractor and other outdoor equipment. I've found most "attached" garages tend to be smaller since they are costlier to build (insulated, etc). Whereas detached garages can be fairly large for the same price because they don't generally have as much interior finishing work completed.
While the "wildcard" is site work (leveling the site, paving, etc); you may be able to get some ballpark pricing from local contractors fairly easily for the structure itself- I'm sure many have some default designs for detached garages they have built and know the price ranges associated with them.
you can definitely make it work - my parents did for years. If you're looking at antique houses, many of them won't have attached garages. It's definitely much, much, MUCH nicer to have an attached garage though!
When we were looking for a home one requirement I stuck to was that the house must have a garage. We have a two car attached garage with no room above but a neighbor has a room above his. If there is a room above, the garage must be insulated and have a column in the middle to support the second floor. My neighbor hates the column in his garage.
We park the cars inside during the winter months and it is wonderful to not have to move the cars first before clearing the driveway and of course we don't get windshield frost.
I was amazed at how many newly built homes had no garage or carports. Some homes just had gravel parking areas.
Some areas zoning will not permit tent-like parking structures ( Mancester for example).
I think the main difference between a garage and a barn is that a barn usually has a cellar type area below and some storage above the 1st floor and a garage is just one story on a concrete slab. I'll take a barn.
and there are pre-fab units that might be suitable
I grew up in a farmhouse without a garage - we had a 3-story barn. That was strictly for animals but had plenty of space for garden tools, tractors, etc.
IMO, it's not always necessary to have a garage although it's really nice and I currently have a two car attached garage. My previous home in Derry included a 2 car garage under AND a 2 story barn with parking for 2 more vehicles.
Thanks, y'all, for the responses. It's funny that when I lived in upstate NY, we had a barn instead of a garage... and we never parked the cars in there. But now that I'm coming back north, I want one (or the other). Strange... It must be a sign of aging, eh? (One of many... LOL!)
I think I'll try to run down some contractors while I'm up there in the next two weeks and try to get a handle on costs. I'm leaning heavily toward a barn -- mostly cuz I want the extra storage, and I can use the loft space for something else.
Any recommendations on somebody I could talk to about building such a thing in So. NH?
Having an attached garage changed my outlook on winter. While a detached is OK, there's nothing like walking out of your kitchen, into the garage, getting into the car, pushing the garage door button, and driving out into the freezing cold. Makes the morning routine so much easier. No ice scraping, no shoveling the car out, no moving the car to snowblow the driveway. My garage was insulated and indirectly heated by the house's furnace, so it always stayed 40-50 degrees even on the coldest days. I will never have a house again without an attached garage.
Glad you enjoyed Amherst... It's not a hard town to fall in love with
If you're seeing barns instead of garages, you're probably seeing older homes on back roads as opposed to newer homes in subdivisions, with dozens of rules and regulations to follow. There are a quite a few farmhouses in the Amherst area, and some of those barns are just beautiful.
Depending on the age of the barn, there may be tax credits for owners who restore and preserve certain characteristics of a barn. Check here (Programs, Tools for Preserving Barns, New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources (http://www.nh.gov/nhdhr/programs/barns.html - broken link)) for more info.
I know it's probably hard to believe, but many people have 2 and 3 car garages that NEVER have a car parked inside. Instead they become storehouses for people's overflow of stuff, especially if one lives in a subdivision where outbuildings are not allowed. People need some place for all the yard tools, lawn mowers, bikes, etc, etc. etc. My neighbor has 5 kids ranging from 7 to 17, and I've never seen any of their cars parked in the 2-car garage. They have a full driveway, and the overflow parks on the side of the road. Luckily we are in a very residential neighborhood-that wouldn't work so well on a main road!
I know somebody who is in process of restoring a barn here in town, and will ask them for recommendations, and will post here when I have some names.
Quote:
Originally Posted by darylyh
We made our first recon trip up the So. NH last month, and finally have a 'feel' for the differences between some of the towns. No two ways about it -- we fell hard for the Amherst area.
We're still planning to move next summer, but we're starting to look a tad harder at real estate offerings now, w/ plans to buy anytime between now and then if that 'perfect something' hits the market.
That said -- some of the homes I see out there currently appeal enormously for various reasons, but some have barns rather than garages. And some have nothing but "parking spaces" (and neither garage nor barn).
I can't image having a place there w/out somewhere out of the weather for the cars. Do people actually make this work?
Would you prefer a barn or a garage?
Finally -- We're hoping for space for 2 cars plus storage (snowblower, etc), and ideally we'd have space above to convert to an office. If there were a place we fell in love with and HAD to have, but it needed a garage/barn, how much do you think it might cost to build one?
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.
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.
