ᐅ Basement or utility room plus a wide garage?

Another topic in the initial planning phase that we are currently facing: basement or no basement?

I can see with my parents that the basement gradually becomes more and more cluttered – many old pieces of furniture, for example. Sure, these might still be worth something. Brand-name items, but 10-20 years old. And because they might be useful again someday (or given away, or …) and there is storage space in the basement, these items are kept. Along with garden furniture, lots of canned goods and long-lasting food supplies, beverage stocks for months, winter or summer tires, washing machine, dryer, tools, and many things that have accumulated over decades and are stored in the basement.

For us, the main question is: what do we need the storage space for?
- Bicycles
- Garden furniture in winter
- Beverage crates for weeks, but not months
- Possibly a chest freezer for long-term food storage
- Tools, chairs, ladder, lawn mower (though here it might make more sense to buy a robotic lawn mower instead of spending a lot of money on storage space)

And now our thoughts on this:

- Preferably keep bicycles and garden furniture in a large double garage (which, however, would then only be used by one car)
- Beverage crates in the utility room
- Tools, etc., in the garage as well
- Chest freezer – still considering

The question is – is a basement worth it, or is it better to design a sufficiently large utility room and add a double garage?
What is the cost difference between a large double garage and a basement?

Is it worth keeping everything if you have paid 30,000 to 50,000 EUR for the basement, or is it better to occasionally throw things away for 100 to 200 EUR but save around 40,000 EUR?

Also, it seems to me that garden furniture and bicycles are generally better stored in the garage anyway! I always have to help every year when my parents move their garden furniture back into the basement ... – the garage seems more practical, doesn’t it?

And a completely different angle: What does an attic space cost? Can this storage space be used? Is this generally possible for every one-and-a-half-story house, or does it need to be a “larger” house? (Of course, beverage crates, bicycles, or garden furniture won’t fit in the attic – but for example Christmas decorations, tools, possibly a chest freezer …)