Monday I was reviewing with a seller the value of their property. Her house was in Southwest Minneapolis where most garages are placed back by the alley. Her property had the garage out front and a long driveway. She insisted that her house was worth more due to the fact it was on a driveway.
My point to her was that in the suburbs a house on an alley would be seen as a negative. The majority of the houses are built with driveways. The concept is to have a wide surface for parking or playing. The garages are attached to the house for convenience. In the city they are a by-product of the barn. The barn never would have been put next to the house, therefore there is green space between the two. It all depends on where the house is located.
I was raised in a suburb, raised my family in a suburb, and now live with Charles in Southwest Minneapolis. I love the alley system and my short driveway to the garage. I don't miss shoveling and shoveling. For 22 years I lived in a house with a long driveway that turned to a side loading garage and had so much surface to maintain.
The major point I made to this seller was that her property had a single garage that could not become a two car garage due to side yard setbacks. That is where the value difference was.
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