I moved into a garage to save money on rent – it’s got everything I need, but there’s a downside
A WOMAN has revealed that she moved into a garage to save money on rent, however, she said there is a downside to her living situation.
Cherry Tung shared details of her unconventional home via a video posted to her YouTube channel.
The garage has been converted into a tiny home and has a bathroom, a bedroom, a living room and a kitchen.
The space is pretty cramped, with the surfaces over-flowing with boxes and bags.
Cherry. who is from LA, said that she decided to move into the garage as she realised that in her twenties she didn't need to live somewhere fancy, and would rather save instead.
She said: "It's really difficult to save if you have to put half of your salary towards rent".
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Cherry, who has previously also lived in a car revealed the pros and cons of living in her garage.
She said that as well as being cheap, she loves the fact that she doesn't have any noisy neighbours above her, keeping her up at night.
She added that the garage has a separate entrance to the main house, where her landlord lives which makes her feel more independent.
However, Cherry said there are many downsides to living in the garage, such as the fact that it is freezing in the winter, due to bad insulation.
She added that it is difficult to receive packages, as post-men find it hard to figure out where she lives.
Cherry said that her garage is riddled with ants and pests, which she found "impossible" to get rid of.
Her friends and colleagues think she is "crazy" for living in a garage, and often make comments about it.
She said: "When I told my co-workers that I was living in a garage they all thought I was crazy, and they all laughed at me", she said.
YouTube users raced to the video's comments section to share their thoughts on the garage conversion.
One person said: "It's awesome that you've done so much to minimize your expenses and lifestyle!"
Are you allowed to convert a garage into a bedroom?
USING average house price figures from Zoopla, Admiral Loans crunched the numbers and worked out that each square foot of living space is worth £350 on average.
Typically, the size of a small single garage in the UK is 128 square feet making the additional space worth £45,000.
A standard conversion costs between £4,995 and £7,500 depending on what work you have done, according to householdquotes.co.uk, which will of course eat into your profits.
If the garage is attached to your home you won't even need to pay for planning permission, which currently costs £206.
The work falls under "permitted development rules", which allows you to make certain changes to your home as long as it's within limits.
This is because you're not really altering the outside dimensions of the building.
But you will need to apply to the local authority if your garage is separate to your house, you live in a flat or maisonette or in a listed building.
It's worth checking before starting any work that there aren't any planning conditions attached to your property - you can do this by writing to the local authority.
If you plough on with building work that actually required permission, you may be ordered to take it down.
A second person said: "That's a nice garage conversion."
A third person added: "Wow! I’m highly impressed by your sacrifices for long term goals".
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A fourth said: "Great place".
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