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Updated almost 4 years ago, 02/12/2021
Renting Out Garage - Lakewood
Hi BP!
I am looking at buying a duplex in Lakewood w/ an unused 2 car garage. Where I live, in Miami, it is common for landlords to fix up and rent out a garage as an efficiency. In Miami, it's usually done w/o permits. Is this common in Lakewood/Cleveland?
- Rental Property Investor
- Cleveland, OH
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No. Lakewood will nail you for it. All rentals need to be registered. Get a permit for the rehab.
Originally posted by @Dave Stokley:
No. Lakewood will nail you for it. All rentals need to be registered. Get a permit for the rehab.
Thank you for taking your time to reply to me. How much do you think that would cost?
Is it even worth it if the garage will only bring about $4-500/month in rent?
- Rental Property Investor
- Cleveland, OH
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How much would the permit cost, or the rehab? I'm not a contractor so it's difficult for me to estimate, but you'll be adding insulation, electric, plumbing, etc., plus building a kithenette and bathroom so... not cheap. $15-20k at least?
Yeh that's not going to fly. Don't do it
Originally posted by @Dave Stokley:
How much would the permit cost, or the rehab? I'm not a contractor so it's difficult for me to estimate, but you'll be adding insulation, electric, plumbing, etc., plus building a kithenette and bathroom so... not cheap. $15-20k at least?
Yea, I think I'm just gonna rent it as storage then. What do you think about that - that's legal right?
Originally posted by @Federico Gutierrez:
Yeh that's not going to fly. Don't do it
Thank you for your reply. Renting it as storage is ok though correct?
That's fine. Storage only
It won't be feasible to convert to a unit in our climate and with the extensive amount of money it would take to run plumbing and power to the garage. I don't think the city would even allow it, but if they did I would estimate that you'd be looking at somewhere upward of $50k or more to make it happen.
A lot of Lakewood doubles have an attic that can be finished, this would probably be a more cost effective and profitable route in terms of adding additional living space.
You can try to rent the garage as a garage, but I can't see anyone other than the tenants wanting to rent a garage space in a residential area unless they live at the property. I would just include the garage as an amenity for the tenants and build that into your rent price.
- Rental Property Investor
- Cleveland, OH
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Agree with @James Maradits on all of the above. If you're worried about the legality just call Lakewood's building department. They have good people who are really helpful.