More homeowners are spending more money on their garages, according to National Association of Home Builders' analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
In a new trend, the garage is fast becoming the lap of luxury of the American home, and a major status symbol. NAHB data show that homeowners spent a cool $3.2 billion on adding garages to their homes in 2015. Instead of being strictly spartan storage space, the garage is becoming a central location for gathering, entertaining, and fun, explains Sam Smith, editor at large for Road & Track. Smith tells The Washington Post, “You’re going to see more people turning those spaces into a more welcoming and usable chunk of their house.”
Short on space? Technology and creativity — and of course cash — can still open doors. “More and more people are interested in urban vs. rural homes, and this presents a challenge if you want to have your cars at your house and you don’t have 40 acres,” says Jonathan Klinger, a spokesman for Hagerty, an insurer of collector cars. And that desire is feeding an industry of space-saving, high-tech lifts, organization systems and even auto elevators that industry experts expect to continue growing as more Americans move to cities and suburbs.
