Why do so many new homes FEATURE a garage? (Houston: countertops, appliances)

[irishlover]

We are still on the hunt for a house and paid our first visit to Firethorne in Katy yesterday. A Katy house is totally outside the scope of what we are looking for (not cookie cutter or cracker jack) but we wanted to see one to put the final nail in the coffin. The house interior was OK...nothing exciting but we couldn't help but notice how the garage is the main feature you notice at the front of the house here and throughout the subdivision. WHY? A garage is the ugliest part of the house IMO and it seemed that most home front entrances there were 1/4 entrance door and porch and 3/4 garage. Is it cheap additional square footage for a builder?

I know we are obsessed with our cars in Texas but does the garage need to feature so prominently? What happened to detached garages separated and set BACK from the main part of the house? The houses we are looking at in Ashford Lakes and Ashford Forest built in the 1970s are more like that and better looking because of it, in my opinion. Obviously many people disagree!

Here is an example even though I'm sure everyone has seen what I'm talking about:




Also, I crawled in the attic of the Katy house (built in 1997). I'd rate the build quality as below average...purlins not flush and nailed correctly to the main support beam, blown insulation (it's not that hard to lay rolled insulation and it's much tidier!)...roof decking material OSB not solid plywood, nails and construction debris strewn throughout the insulation. Looks like the place was slapped together in a few days. Needless to say we sped out of the subdivision.

[Truglesmith]

I've always wondered about that myself. I grew up with a detached garage (nicely tucked away behind the house), and have always preferred that. I figured the "garage in front" approach was modern and to make the house property cheaper overall (not have to build two separate buildings). It will always look weird, tacky, and a bit comical to me though.

At least a few homes I've seen turn the garage 90 degrees, so the garage opening faces away from the front of the house, and makes it less noticeable.

[ftjoe12]

You are way off base with some assumptions. What you are assuming is an issue with Katy is just an issue with all of the tract home builders. This is typical construction in this area of Texas.

If you don't like the way the construction is done on a particular house you can get the builder to make changes or use another builder. Not a big deal on new construction.

The garage feature is just an issue with lot size. Up your price range. There are tons of detached garages in that same neighborhood. They are on bigger lots.

The homes you like from the 70's were cookie cutter in 1975...lol.

[irishlover]

Originally Posted by ftjoe12

You are way off base with some assumptions. What you are assuming is an issue with Katy is just an issue with all of the tract home builders. This is typical construction in this area of Texas.

If you don't like the way the construction is done on a particular house you can get the builder to make changes or use another builder. Not a big deal on new construction.

The garage feature is just an issue with lot size. Up your price range. There are tons of detached garages in that same neighborhood. They are on bigger lots.

The homes you like from the 70's were cookie cutter in 1975...lol.

I don't know...this house was on a 16,000 sq ft lot. Then again, who knows what the buyer asked for...maybe they wanted this design!

Obviously this ins't just a Katy thing...I just drive by Katy everyday so it seems particularly acute there. I know it's throughout Texas and I'm sure many parts of the US...my question was more of a general one, geographically speaking. And I don't agree with you on the cookie cutter homes in Ashford Forest/Lakes area. EVERY house is almost completely different from the one next to it. And not just a different brick color or garage color (lol)...a completely different design. For maybe a few thousand dollars more (in the Ashford area) I can't figure out why people would buy a little piece of hell in Katy...

[fordlover]

Yeah, our first house was on a 4,750 sq. ft. lot. We always joked that our front door was 16 ft wide! Looked horrible.

Our new home actually has a lot more garage (16 ft door and a 8 ft) but since we're on more than double the size lot, the garage in the back and can't be seen from the front of the house. Much prettier neighborhood IMHO. We love having more breathing room between us and our neighbors, we'll never go back.

[Cassino]

I grew up in California in a track home built in the 1980 with this type of design. Come to think of it, not many houses built in the area during that time featured a garage in another configuration.

[Liljo22]

I came from Florida. Every home has an attached garage there. I actually can't remember seeing a detached garage every there.

[Lost_In_Translation]

Originally Posted by irishlover

I know we are obsessed with our cars in Texas but does the garage need to feature so prominently? What happened to detached garages separated and set BACK from the main part of the house? The houses we are looking at in Ashford Lakes and Ashford Forest built in the 1970s are more like that and better looking because of it, in my opinion. Obviously many people disagree!

By Ashford Forest, do you mean one in Katy or in west Houston?

I think developers build garages that way because it is the cheapest way, though if I were buying one of those $800k homes in Braes Heights, I'd be mortally offended that a developer thought he could pull that stunt with me. I'd rather lose a backyard to additional driveway (tastefully incorporated into a patio style) than front my house with that gaping hole. But people looking for a cheap starter home in Katy probably choose the shiny new granite countertops and stainless steel appliances before the worry about the street fronting aesthetic.

[Lost_In_Translation]

Originally Posted by Liljo22

I came from Florida. Every home has an attached garage there. I actually can't remember seeing a detached garage every there.

Alot of Florida was built in the last 20 years by cheap developers.

[chris_ut]

Originally Posted by Lost_In_Translation

Alot of Florida was built in the last 20 years by cheap developers.

My grandparents custom built house in FL, built in the 1960s, has the same garage in front configuration as does every house in their neighborhood (also 60s).