It’s a Pacific Northwest thing to park your car on the street and pack your garage like a U-Haul, but doing this could cost you thousands and become potentially hazardous. First, one in four garages are so jam-packed that there’s no room to park a car. That’s a massive concern because items stored in a garage are generally worth a lot less than an actual car.

“Parking in a garage is one of the best ways to keep your car or its catalytic converter from being stolen,” Derek Wing, the Pemco Insurance spokesman, said.

This could save you thousands of dollars on deductibles and repairs.

After declining for two years in 2018 and 2019, Washington has now been named the No. 1 state in the nation for catalytic converter theft, according to a new report on crime statistics. Parking your car in your home’s garage could prevent this from happening.

Another added benefit is your car is less likely to develop rust, and it’s safer to drive “because, on frosty mornings, you won’t be tempted to drive before you scraped all your windows.”

Another thing Wing says is that cleaning a garage can clear out hazards you didn’t know were hiding. The list is longer than you might think!

Wing tells KIRO Newsradio that these items should be stored in a shed detached from the house or a temperature-controlled storage unit.

If your garage is completely jam-packed, how do you even begin to clear out the clutter? Wing says to try these steps so that it doesn’t seem so overwhelming.

The sooner you clean out the clutter and get organized, the faster you can safely store your vehicle … in the garage.

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