There are many reasons why a garage is a good thing to turn into an apartment: some people benefit from the extra income when they rent it out, while others enjoy the benefit of having grown children live close by while still giving them the responsibility and privacy that they need. Still others manage to convert a garage into living space for relatives who need a temporary space to stay for an extended period of time. Whatever your reasons, converting a garage into a cozy apartment is definitely something you can do with just a little extra work. For this project you will need a roll of insulation, a couple of sheets of wallboard or plywood for the walls, wall paint, paint roller, one medium and one small paint brush, hammer, handsaw, nails, floor covering, cleaning supplies, and a mask and gloves.

Step 1. Do a thorough sweep of the floor, following it up with a thorough scrubbing with laundry detergent. For floors that are not too soaked with grease, the broom may actually be used to work up the suds. Rinse the suds off with a few buckets of water, making sure to sweep the water outside. Dry off the floor for a couple of days before you start to install the flooring. While the floor dries, and as long as you can have solid footing by the walls, you can start painting the walls.

Step 2. With your mask and gloves put on, install the insulation into the garage-door space. Over the installation, fit the plywood panels, nailing them to the studs on what used to be the garage door. Install them in a way that you will have a normal-sized apartment door.

Step 3. When the paint dries, install the flooring you chose. Peel-and-stick floor tiles are pretty straightforward to install by just following the directions on their box; you can also opt for woven jute mats positioned where you need them to be, such as in places where you will put the bed or the sofa. You can also opt to paint the floor with matte enamel paint for a tighter budget.

Step 4. Run electrical wirings and plumbing through the exterior wall of the house towards the garage apartment. You can save on costs by placing the kitchen and bathroom closest to the wall shared with the main house. For a large garage, you can then section off different living areas, setting up plywood walls. A one-car garage will typically be better off left as a studio apartment.

Step 5. If the person who will use the garage apartment is actually a family member who can go in anytime to use the bathroom, you need not worry about installing a toilet. But if the apartment will be rented out to strangers, you can opt for a chemical toilet. You can check for a safe as well as legal space for regularly dumping the chemical toilet in line with sanitation and health laws. Camping equipment stores are good places to buy a chemical toilet.

Step 6. Now that you have gotten the necessary things in place, you can now start to furnish and decorate your new apartment!