Garage Facelift
The NWI Times
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Jean Starr

Like the junk drawer in everyone's kitchen, garages are the catch-all in many people's homes.

Christmas decorations mingle with garden rakes while that rusty old lawn chair you've always meant to restore serves as a drop-off center for tarps and tools. If this is what your garage looks like, it's become not only an eyesore for you, but a black hole through which things have a way of disappearing and never being seen again.

Two Northwest Indiana professional organizers get calls for garage fix-ups throughout the year, but especially during spring and fall.

Laura Pannekoek, owner of Interior Design & Organization (www.interiordesignandorganization.com) said that garage organization items have come a long way and are easy to find at large hardware stores.

Pulley systems make it easier to store heavy items up near the garage ceiling. Pannekoek tells of one family that takes a lot of road trips. They store their luggage on a shelf hooked up to a pulley system constructed over the car. When they're ready to go they fill their luggage, put it back on the pulley shelf, pull the car part-way out of the garage and lower the pulley to a level that makes it easier to put the luggage in the car.

Both Pannekoek and Kokai agree that it's best to start off by taking everything out of the garage and sorting it into categories that include, toss, keep, donate and sell. Pannekoek admits there are always some things that people can't decide what to do with. In the end, when everything else is sorted, most people decide to toss those quandary-creators.

Elaine Kokai recommends zoning a garage using color codes, which make it easier to put things back.

"You can either draw lines with colored chalk and once it's determined where everything goes, you can use colored tape to border each area," she said. "A lot of people like color coding, especially those who are visually-oriented. It helps keep your garage organized a little bit longer by having those designated spaces."

Pannekoek offers seven steps to reorganizing your garage:

1. Prioritize: Identify what is bothering you the most in your garage.

2. Schedule time: Make an appointment with yourself and your family 3. Set a deadline - if you plan to have a garage sale, advertise it to help motivate you.

4. Eliminate unnecessary items: Only keep what you want.

5. Pitch or fix now: If you have something that has been broken for more than two years either fix it right then or toss it.

6. Give it away: Think of the people who can use something you've been holding onto right now.

7. Categorize: Sort items into zones that might include gardening, painting, sports and care.

Kokai offers some excellent advice to get started with any chore that seems overwhelming.

"It's important to have someone help. Set a timer and give yourself half an hour to do something. It's less daunting," she said. "If you know you only have a half hour you are more apt to get things done. Take it a piece at a time over the course of several weekends."

U.S. Garage Trends

Compiled by GarageTek

Bigger Garages & Garage Costs vs. Other Home Improvements

* There are more than 65 million garages in the United States

* In 1950, 59 percent of new homes had no garage, today 91 percent of new homes have a garage and 83 percent have a 2-car or more garage. (Source: National Association of Home Builders Housing Facts, Figures and Trends 2004)

* 17 percent of new homes in the U.S. have a three-car garage. (Source: 2000 U.S. Census)

* 25 percent of new homebuyers want at least a 3-car garage. (Source: National Association of Home Builders Housing Facts, Figures and Trends 2004)

* 1.3 million garages were converted into living space in 1998. (Source: 2000 U.S. Census)

* It costs an average of $30 per square foot to revamp the garage with GarageTek. In comparison, it costs approximately $300-$400 per square foot for a major upscale kitchen or bath remodel. (Source: GarageTek)

* The national average for an upscale bathroom remodel is more than $50,000 and the average for an upscale kitchen remodel is more than $109,000; in contrast, the average GarageTek remodel costs $12,000. (Sources: Remodeling Magazine 2007 Cost Vs Value Report and GarageTek)

Garage Organization Trend is Huge

* More than 42 percent of individuals rate "cleaning up and organizing the garage" as a high priority for 2007-09. (Source: Peachtree Consulting Survey)

* A recent survey by leading real-estate brokerage Century 21 found that 74 percent of homebuyers cited the garage as the most important amenity - outranking a large kitchen, formal dining room or big backyard. And what they prize most about the garage is its storage capacity. (Source: Century 21 Index)

* Homeowners spent $2.5 billion on garage remodeling in 2005. (Source: National Association of Home Builders)

* 25 percent of people with two-car garages don't park any cars in their garages, and 32 percent only have room for one. (Source: U.S. Department of Energy)

* The garage is the number one area in the home for storage and organization product spending in 2006. Source: Peachtree Consulting Survey

* 50 percent of homeowners rate the garage as the most disorganized place in the house and a place the entire family uses regularly. (Source: Harris Interactive Survey, April 2003)

* Retail sales of garage organization products has increased 38 percent from 2001 to 2005 from $498 million to $688 million. (Source: HomeWorld Business, January 2006)

* Plastic is the preferred material type for garage organization products according to 83 percent of consumers. (Source: HomeWorld Business, January 2006)

* The latest trend in home space usage by architects and builders is "flex space"-oversized garages that can be utilized for multiple purposes such as cars, workshops, kids' play rooms and more.