GARAGE LIVING - WHY IT ISN'T SAFE OR LEGAL
Over the last few months, our Property Managers have noticed a trend occurring in some rental properties, especially in ones with spacious garages. Some owners having opted to use their garages as an additional bedroom.
The Queensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC), under their classification summary of buildings and structures, have classed garages as Class 10A dwellings, which are 'A non-habitable building or structure'.
In a nutshell, this means that while you are free to use your garage as a living area, games room, hobby studio or study, you aren't permitted to use it as a bedroom.
The main reason for a garage not being allowed as a bedroom is that bedrooms need to meet certain requirements in order to be recognised as habitable. Some of these requirements are windows, insulation, smoke alarms and, in the case of some older homes, some garages may not meet minimum height requirements for habitability.
So remember, while it may seem appealing to convert the garage into a bedroom, doing so breaches both QLD Tenancy Law and possible council approvals.