Apartment Rental Garage Cost

[RunningintoFI]

Hello fellow Mustachians!  Hoping some more auto-savvy folks can help me answer this question. 

I'm moving to a new apartment that falls right along one of the Great Lakes in the upper Midwest and is a whopping 10 minute bike ride to work.  As a result of this move, I will be doing a lot less driving since I can bike to work and then only drive for trips to Costco or to see the SO. 

Given that this place is right along the lake and there is a sizable amount of snow in the winter months, is it worth it to have a garage to store the car in most of the time?  I've always been told that a garage helps the car retain value and functionality for longer but never actually verified that this is true. 

Relevant details: 
Garage is $150/month [apparently standard price for the area]
Car is paid off but still fairly new (~4 years old)
Planning to keep this car until it dies in two decades

Thanks for any insight!

[terran]

Your car will be fine. Much more damage will be done by driving it on salty roads than by having snow on it. And especially if you're a good little mustachian and keep it another 6-11 years or more there's no way it will be worth an extra $10,800 - 19,800 for being garage kept. And that doesn't even account for how much that $150/month could grow if invested. 

[skiersailor]

I wouldn't pay for the garage either, but you should try to drive the car once every 1-2 weeks to keep it healthy.  This may not be enough to keep the battery charged, so either buy a lithium battery jump starter to keep in your apartment or buy a solar powered trickle charger like the Goal Zero Maintainer 10 that you can stick to a window.  Also switch your insurance to a low mileage option for a reduced premium.

[J Dough]

Another option is a car cover.

[Cranky]

I would look for an apartment that included a garage if at all possible. It is a huge pain to shovel out a car after a big snowstorm, the city makes you move off the street periodically, and people can be darned testy about parking places.

[use2betrix]

How does that $150/mo impact you financially? There is a big difference between someone making $40k/yr and $200k/yr..

[six-car-habit]

 Is it a "high-end " car ?   Garage equals less door dings and scratches from your apartment neighbors. Garage equals less sun fade on interior and exterior.  Garage means your windshield wipers wont be frozen to the windshield.
   If this were something like an M-3 BMW, Cadillac CTS-V, Lexus Rc-500 , than yes. If it is similar to a Civic, Camry, Taurus, than No.
 
 Do you have other items that could be stored in the garage - Are you paying for storage elsewhere ?   Can you put up shelves and also hang your Kayak, Bicycle, on the wall, X-mas ornaments on the shelf, etc.   Would you otherwise put your biclycle and Kayak in a spare bedroom, or cram them into your living room ?  If yes to the above [ and you dont want to get rid of these items ] than it could make a lot more sense than just getting it for a car.

  I guess i haven't been in many, or any, apartment complexes that had an attic, shed, or extra large closets included. If i had a nice car and didn't want to look at boxes of keepsakes lining my living room walls, or fill my clothes closet with scuba gear, or some other bulky "hobby thing". i would spend the money.  If i had two normal size boxes of "keepsakes", and not much else, but clothes and dishes, and a $20,000 vehicle, i would keep the money and let the car suffer.

[RetiredAt63]

Is it a "high-end " car ?   Garage equals less door dings and scratches from your apartment neighbors. Garage equals less sun fade on interior and exterior.  Garage means your windshield wipers wont be frozen to the windshield.
   If this were something like an M-3 BMW, Cadillac CTS-V, Lexus Rc-500 , than yes. If it is similar to a Civic, Camry, Taurus, than No.
 
 Do you have other items that could be stored in the garage - Are you paying for storage elsewhere ?   Can you put up shelves and also hang your Kayak, Bicycle, on the wall, X-mas ornaments on the shelf, etc.   Would you otherwise put your biclycle and Kayak in a spare bedroom, or cram them into your living room ?  If yes to the above [ and you dont want to get rid of these items ] than it could make a lot more sense than just getting it for a car.

  I guess i haven't been in many, or any, apartment complexes that had an attic, shed, or extra large closets included. If i had a nice car and didn't want to look at boxes of keepsakes lining my living room walls, or fill my clothes closet with scuba gear, or some other bulky "hobby thing". i would spend the money.  If i had two normal size boxes of "keepsakes", and not much else, but clothes and dishes, and a $20,000 vehicle, i would keep the money and let the car suffer.

The few times I have rented, management has not allowed any storage in the parking area except storing your car.  After all, an apartment garage is a big area with a lot of tenants having access - storing things would leave them very open to theft.  It's not an individual unit like the garage that comes with a house is.

So really the question is, does the OP need to park the car inside or not?  And that really depends on the weather where OP lives.  DD had a car almost totalled once from hail, because she had only outdoor parking where she lived.  It doesn't take long to have several thousand dollars worth of damage done to a car by weather.

[six-car-habit]

**** Quote- "The few times I have rented, management has not allowed any storage in the parking area except storing your car.  After all, an apartment garage is a big area with a lot of tenants having access - storing things would leave them very open to theft.  It's not an individual unit like the garage that comes with a house is."****

  Ah, yes. If it was a "parking garage" that was basically a lower full floor of the building , what you say makes lots of sense. My kid brother lives in a "condo" bldg like this. Plain concrete and exposed piping with parking lines painted on the floor.  He paid an extra $30K [ I think ] to have a spot tied into his unit / title. But he is right downtown in a major city with no real option to park elsewhere.

 I was thinking this place OP is at , was somewhat more suburban, where the apartments have a row of single car garages with common side walls. Like everyone gets one outside parking space, but you can rent a single car , completely enclosed, and private spot, for the extra $150.

[blingwrx]

I would say no on the garage if you only want it to keep your car in good condition. It's really not worth it unless you have a collectible car or a rare car that might go up in value over time. The math also doesn't work out here, will your car really be worth $1800 more each year by storing it in the garage? I doubt it will gain any value at all.

As others have mentioned car cover could be an option. Snow and rain won't damage your car, but road salt when you drive after a snow storm can cause your car to rust and this would be an issue regardless if you parked in a garage or not, so do get your undercarriage washed occasionally to get the salt out, you can also get a protective coating put on under the car to prevent rust. Get regular car washes and occasional wax to keep the paint fresh, always clean off bird poop, otherwise it could eat away at the paint. Put up front window shade when parked out in the sun during hot summer days if you have leather seats to prevent them from drying out and cracking, also occasionally lotion the leather seats to keep them soft.

As far as the internals and drivability, yes your battery may die sooner if you leave it out in the cold, but just running the car once a week will keep things in good shape. Otherwise cars are tough and made to last weather they're parked out in the cold or in a heated garage.

The main reason people get a garage/private parking is for when it's extremely hard for them to find street parking in their area or if there is alternate side parking where it's inconvenient to have to move the car once or twice a week.

[use2betrix]

Is it a "high-end " car ?   Garage equals less door dings and scratches from your apartment neighbors. Garage equals less sun fade on interior and exterior.  Garage means your windshield wipers wont be frozen to the windshield.
   If this were something like an M-3 BMW, Cadillac CTS-V, Lexus Rc-500 , than yes. If it is similar to a Civic, Camry, Taurus, than No.
 
 Do you have other items that could be stored in the garage - Are you paying for storage elsewhere ?   Can you put up shelves and also hang your Kayak, Bicycle, on the wall, X-mas ornaments on the shelf, etc.   Would you otherwise put your biclycle and Kayak in a spare bedroom, or cram them into your living room ?  If yes to the above [ and you dont want to get rid of these items ] than it could make a lot more sense than just getting it for a car.

  I guess i haven't been in many, or any, apartment complexes that had an attic, shed, or extra large closets included. If i had a nice car and didn't want to look at boxes of keepsakes lining my living room walls, or fill my clothes closet with scuba gear, or some other bulky "hobby thing". i would spend the money.  If i had two normal size boxes of "keepsakes", and not much else, but clothes and dishes, and a $20,000 vehicle, i would keep the money and let the car suffer.

The few times I have rented, management has not allowed any storage in the parking area except storing your car.  After all, an apartment garage is a big area with a lot of tenants having access - storing things would leave them very open to theft.  It's not an individual unit like the garage that comes with a house is.

So really the question is, does the OP need to park the car inside or not?  And that really depends on the weather where OP lives.  DD had a car almost totalled once from hail, because she had only outdoor parking where she lived.  It doesn't take long to have several thousand dollars worth of damage done to a car by weather.

My current apartment has an attached 1 car garage and other 1 car garages available for rent. My last apartment complex had detached individual apartments available for rent.

[Boll weevil]

For me, the decision came down to preferring to not have to scrape the windows of snow and/or ice in the mornings.

My complex has mostly carports with a few garages, and the carports are enough to keep the windows clean.

I started off renting the carport only in the winter months, but there were a couple years where I went in to rent one and they were all occupied so I ended up on a waiting list, so now I just keep it year round. But my carport is only $25/month, so it doesn’t have as much effect on the wallet as your garage would.

[Cadman]

For me, the decision came down to preferring to not have to scrape the windows of snow and/or ice in the mornings.

My complex has mostly carports with a few garages, and the carports are enough to keep the windows clean.

I started off renting the carport only in the winter months, but there were a couple years where I went in to rent one and they were all occupied so I ended up on a waiting list, so now I just keep it year round. But my carport is only $25/month, so it doesn’t have as much effect on the wallet as your garage would.

The silver lining here is that UV is unrelentless on your clear coat and interior. If it's a half-way decent car with good paint, a carport for $25/mo is well worth it IMO.

[slappy]

I personally would not pay $150 per month for a garage in this situation. However, I have heard the same about how garaging a vehicle is better for a it, and I always park in the parking garage at work, but that's free. If you need the car infrequently, is it worth it to go carless? Sounds like you may be able to rent a car when needed for cheaper than paying for the garage, nevermind also paying for the car. Uber for the costco trip, and rent a car for the visits to SO (depending on how long the trip is)?

[Boll weevil]

The silver lining here is that UV is unrelentless on your clear coat and interior. If it's a half-way decent car with good paint, a carport for $25/mo is well worth it IMO.

That wasn’t on my list of concerns, but I guess I’ll take it. Even though I was paying for the carport, I was still parking in an one of the uncovered spots immediately in front of my building when there wasn’t any risk of having to scrape the next morning.

Then one of my neighbor’s frequent guests decided to claim my carport as his and left me a nasty note when I parked there (probably felt entitled with his BMW X5). I had to get the property management involved and he got straightened out, but now I feel I have to park there every day to assert my claim. This is the first year I’ve been using it regularly throughout the year.

[RunningintoFI]

As a point of reference to address something RetiredAt63 brought up, I have an affinity for garages because I had two vehicles totaled due to hail storms in a prior location.  While I did not lose out financially in those situations, the hassle and time it takes to resolve those situations (read: insurance companies) was unpleasant.   

That being said, I am not getting a garage year round since at such a high price.  I can do short term rentals so I might rent it out for January through March as a compromise.  I don't mind the temporary hit in the worst of the winter months. 

Thanks for your responses!