Garage or extra bedroom?

Hi all, asking for opinions please - the garage of my house was converted to a rumpus by the previous owner which I hardly use and the ceiling is a bit lower (2.5m I think). There is a carport on the side which is a bit hard to get my car in. I want to reconvert it back to a proper garage so there is internal access but I asked a property agent who said I’m better off making it as a fourth bedroom for resale since I’ve got a side carport and do up the front (flower bed / carport at front). I’ve attached photos below.

Would you prefer a 3 bed house with proper garage, or a 4 bed house with a carport?

I’m in the Sutherland shire in Sydney and my house is a 1960s full brick in a family area, and the Census average population for my suburb is 2 children.

Many thanks.

 

Sorry correction above, the Census data for families with children is 1.7, and average people per household is 2.5.

 

If the ceiling is not legal height you won’t be able to advertise as a 4 bedroom house.

I’d leave it the way it is. A future buyer can open it up if they want to.
Marg

 

How many bathrooms do you have? Lots of people make a (bed, bath, car) 3,1,1 into a 4,1,1 which I think is a mistake. IMO you need at least 2 bathrooms with a 4brm house.

 

Thanks all.

I added a second bathroom upstairs and turned the original bathroom into an ensuite. There is a also small separate (access from outside) bathroom downstairs which I’m planning to turn into an ensuite with the adjoining bedroom. So yes there are 3 bathrooms now.

Another weird thing about this house is there is no internal stairs so I will need to cut a section of the living room for the stairs which will go into the current rumpus. Will put up a gyprock wall to make the 4th bed but someone in the future can still reconvert back to garage then.

I bought middle of last year as a 3 bedder as the market was going down so I’ve already lost $100k by value plus the $120k I’ve already spent renovating kitchen, bathroom etc. Making it a 4 bedder does make sense to help recoup cost in the future.

 

Thanks, just checked that BCA legal height for a bedroom is 2.4m. Will double check if the rumpus measures short.

 

Buyers who check council DAs may be a concern during a sale.

 

But these are all internal works and my land is not heritage, flood/fire prone etc - is changing internal configuration required for DA too? I know carport pergolas etc needs DA if it’s not within exempt / complying conditions.

 

Are you planning on selling, renting or living in the house short or long term as that also will make a difference.

 

I’m already living in it, intending to stay 5-10 yrs. While renting out the downstairs bedroom is a possibility (so without stairs actually suits as it can be self contained), but the main thing is capital gain if I sell down the track, so I want to appeal to future buyers. That’s why I’m thinking of further renovations (garage/extra bedroom, internal stairs, back pergola) to add value. The house was owner built so he probably skipped on things like the internal stairs! It is turning out to be a bit of a money pit and the only saving grace is it’s full brick with concrete floor with district views off living area and in a quiet street.