This blog series answers common home building questions. My goal is to provide you with a quick answer (300 words or less!) to a question and when I can, give you resources to find more information on the topic. 

Today’s question is – Where Should I Put My Garage?

When planning out a new custom home, one of the things you should think about is where the garage/driveway should be. Whether the garage for your new home is attached to the house or detached from the house, it is wise to put the garage on the “high side” of the lot. So, if when looking at your lot face-on, it slopes down from left to right, the garage would go on the left side of the house. This makes it easier to work with the natural grade on the lot when setting floor elevations.

If there is an existing driveway, it will likely already be located on the high side of the lot. And 9 times out of 10, this method of determining the handing of the garage works best. But there are certain factors that could require an alternate plan such as…

• Relocation of driveway entrance to another street (most commonly occurs on corner lots)
• Relocation of driveway entrance due to utility location
• Relocation of driveway due to personal preference (this isn’t always the best course of action, but it is absolutely worth investigating)

Always choose a reputable site engineer to help you plan out your site. And make sure you communicate exactly what you are envisioning for your new home. Here is a list of questions to get you started!

Dream Big. Build Smart.