garage question - renovation related

[CloudBee]

Is there a name for the type of construction where a garage/basement are level with each other, and the first story of the home is directly above?  Typically these garages are on the side or back of the house.  The home typically built on a hill or incline.  You need to go up an entire flight of stairs from the garage to access to house, or outside around the side of the house and up a walkway/staggered stairs.

Say the garage is faced with concrete - siding in this one place stops a few feet above the top of the doors, and does not extend on either side of the doors or between them.  Any idea how much it would cost to extend the siding on the house?  Is it difficult to attach wood siding to concrete?

Here's an example of the garage layout I am discussing, though this has full siding all around.

[glynn]

I do not know the name but I would not think the cost would be to bad since most of the space is the doors.

[pamela]

Would this still qualify as a split level? The concept is a bit unfamiliar to me because I've never lived somewhere with basements (either on solid rock or on a super high water table).

[sjh722]

Jul 23, 2014 14:50:48 GMT -5 pamela said:

Would this still qualify as a split level? The concept is a bit unfamiliar to me because I've never lived somewhere with basements (either on solid rock or on a super high water table).

I don't think so. To me, a split level means either steps going up/down when you enter the front door, or a half-flight of stairs to both the upper and lower levels from the main level. I would call the picture posted a colonial with a below-grade garage. (No idea if that's correct!)

I don't think it would be terribly difficult to side over the garage. 

[msmerymac]

I honestly don't know the answer to the cost question or ease of siding over concrete, but I think one of your major challenges would be finding matching siding. My house was sided less than 10 years ago, probably, but when we looked into getting matching siding after our fire damage, they found the manufacturer either was out of business or no longer making it, so I had to go with siding in an almost exact color, but slightly different texture. However, this was one one whole side of the house, so it just had to match enough at the corners. I'd be worried about having to replace all of the siding on the garage side of the house to get it to match up.

(ETA: this is assuming it's not just plain wood clapboard style, in which case, it doesn't really matter.)

[Deleted]

Jul 23, 2014 14:54:47 GMT -5 sjh722 said:

I don't think so. To me, a split level means either steps going up/down when you enter the front door, or a half-flight of stairs to both the upper and lower levels from the main level. 


[/quote]


I don't think that's quite right--that's a certain type of split level.

My house is a split, but the kitchen and living room are on the level of the front door.

Still not sure what this type house would be.

[sjh722]

Jul 23, 2014 16:41:17 GMT -5 @kcpokergal said:

Jul 23, 2014 14:54:47 GMT -5 sjh722 said:

I don't think so. To me, a split level means either steps going up/down when you enter the front door, or a half-flight of stairs to both the upper and lower levels from the main level. 

I don't think that's quite right--that's a certain type of split level.

My house is a split, but the kitchen and living room are on the level of the front door.

Still not sure what this type house would be. [/quote]

Right, that's a half flight of stairs to the upper or lower levels from the main (on the level of the front door). It's a tri-level.

[Deleted]

Ah--we have houses around here where there literally is no entry level, only a landing and you have to go up or down. I'm easily confused;)

[sjh722]

Jul 23, 2014 16:52:02 GMT -5 @kcpokergal said:

Ah--we have houses around here where there literally is no entry level, only a landing and you have to go up or down. I'm easily confused;)

That's a bi-level, which some people also call a split level. You are not the only one confused, a lot of agents have trouble entering the square footage correctly in the MLS LOL

[countthestars]

We call it a drive under house/garage. I have no idea on cost.

[CloudBee]

Jul 23, 2014 19:59:12 GMT -5 countthestars said:

We call it a drive under house/garage. I have no idea on cost.

Drive under!  Thanks.

To the people above - I wasn't sure if there was a reason it was left exposed as cement.  But I assume they couldn't have that portion framed in wood as the garage is partway underground.

[sjh722]

Jul 23, 2014 20:55:35 GMT -5 CloudBee said:

Jul 23, 2014 19:59:12 GMT -5 countthestars said:

We call it a drive under house/garage. I have no idea on cost.

Drive under!  Thanks.

To the people above - I wasn't sure if there was a reason it was left exposed as cement.  But I assume they couldn't have that portion framed in wood as the garage is partway underground.

We don't have drive-under garages here, but we do have walk-out basements (which have exposed cement/blocks) and people put siding over exposed parts of those. I can't see why you couldn't side a garage.

[elocrates]

Jul 23, 2014 21:33:20 GMT -5 sjh722 said:

Jul 23, 2014 20:55:35 GMT -5 CloudBee said:

Drive under!  Thanks.

To the people above - I wasn't sure if there was a reason it was left exposed as cement.  But I assume they couldn't have that portion framed in wood as the garage is partway underground.

We don't have drive-under garages here, but we do have walk-out basements (which have exposed cement/blocks) and people put siding over exposed parts of those. I can't see why you couldn't side a garage.

Around here they are called a tuck-under garage and are not uncommon. Some people leave the exposed brick and paint it to match the color of the siding. Others put on a faux stone layer over the brick. Some side over the whole area--it IS possible. No idea on cost, sorry.