How much does a carport cost?

A carport can provide your car with more protection from the elements than parking on the street, in your driveway, or on your front lawn. Carports may also be less expensive to install than a garage, though their cost can vary depending on your property.

What is a carport? 

A carport is an unenclosed structure that puts a roof over your car, protecting it from rain, hail, and falling leaves and branches. However, because your car is still exposed to the elements, it may not be as well-protected from extreme weather events or from theft as it might be in an enclosed garage.

What can affect your carport’s cost? 

A carport can be simpler and less expensive to build than an enclosed garage. Costs may vary depending on the layout of your driveway and the size of your carport.

According to HiPages, custom carports can start from around $6,000 for a single carport and go up to $20,000 or more for a double carport. The average cost for a single carport in Australia is $10,000 and the average cost for a double carport is $20,000. 

Factors to keep in mind include:

• Design: What colour will your carport be? And what style of roof are you using, e.g. flat, pitched, skillion, gable? Generally, simpler carport designs are more likely to cost less.
• Building approval/council fees: If you need to apply for approval from your local council to construct a carport, you may need to pay a fee to help cover the admin costs.
• Preparation: Laying a concrete slab gives you a level surface to park your car, and to keep the carport stable.
• Materials: You may have a wide variety of potential options to consider, from colorbond to galvanised steel to timber. Different materials may better suit the aesthetic of different homes, provide different levels of stability, and of course, come with different price tags.
• Extras: Did you want to install extra bells and whistles on your carport, such as undercover lights? Extra features could also mean extra costs, though they may provide extra value to the right household

Can you build a carport yourself? 

It may be possible to build your own carport and save a little money. Some carports are available as prefabricated kits, which can be assembled on site with minimal fuss using some tools and basic DIY skills. According to HiPages, carport kits can cost between $1000 and $5000.

However, these kits may not suit the aesthetic of every household, or fit the physical size and layout of your property. And if you’re not an especially handy person, the results may not match the quality you’d expect from paying for a professional build.

Can a carport affect your car insurance? 

The cost of your car insurance may be influenced by the risk that your car may experience an insurable event, such as being damaged or stolen. As well as considering your car’s make, model and age, some insurers may look at where your car is parked as a potential risk factor.

Parking on the street, in a driveway, or on your grass could be considered riskier than using a car port, as there may be a higher risk of the car being damaged by falling branches or exposed to dangerous weather.

Of course, keeping your car in an enclosed and locked garage could mean even cheaper insurance than using a carport, as your car’s risk of theft and other damage may be even lower. But this may not be an option for every household. And with so many other factors for insureres to consider, where you park your car may not always make a big difference to your insurance premium. 

How can you pay for a carport? 

• Get a personal loan:Home improvement personal loans can help cover the cost of carports and other renovation projects. You may be able to get a lower interest rate based on your credit score, and regularly scheduled repayments mean you can calculate the cost ahead of time, and hopefully avoid getting stuck in a debt spiral.   
• Refinance your home loan: If you’ve built up equity in your home, you may be able to extend your home loan when you refinance and use the extra to pay for your carport and other extras. Alternatively, you could apply for a home equity loan, whether you’re borrowing a lump sum or accessing a flexible line of credit.
• Access your redraw or offset: The extra repayments you’ve made onto your home loan or saved in your offset account could be put towards paying for your carport, though this means you won’t benefit from the same interest savings any longer.
• Use your savings: Once you’ve built up a nest egg in your savings account and/or term deposit, you could withdraw some of this money to pay for your carport, though this would mean missing out on earning more interest on this money
• Use a credit card: If you have the credit limit available, you could put the cost of your carport on your plastic. Just watch out for interest charges if you won’t be able to pay off the card balance within the interest-free days.

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