At first, garages seemed more of an afterthought, hidden behind the home or built as a separate entity. This garage seems more like a shed than a garage, and it doesn't even match the house's style, as the roof is facing a completely different way.
This garage is still detached, but at least has the same color and gable as the rest of the house.
I don't know what to call this... semi-attached garage? Not sure how well that covered walkway protects these homeowners from blowing snow/rain that comes at you sideways.
Finally, an attached garage! While this house is the same style as the one above it, I would guess the garage wasn't originally attached. However, the hallway-mudroom was probably built later on to utilize the garage as an entrance instead of just somewhere to store junk. Maybe it is because I am just used to parking my car in the garage and heading into my kitchen, but I believe many people in my neighborhood utilize their garage entrance more than the front door. Unless you are the unlucky teenage driver who has to park in the driveway, most garages are the main entrance/exit in my area. This is a big plus on those snowy nights or below-freezing days when I don't have to scrape my windows off because I was parked in the garage all night, away from the elements! I also think if you read the Home Finder looking for a house in the suburbs, realtors/sellers no longer need to specify that garages are included, or even attached for that matter; I think it is just expected.
This breezeway from the garage to the main part of the house allows a nice view of the backyard from the street... These people now have three front entrances to their home. Where to ring the doorbell if you're selling candy bars?
This also seems to be another added-on mudroom, though the stairs give the side entrance a front entrance feel.
This home, (probably built between 1988-2000 like most homes in my development) appears to have a mudroom. However, it is nothing more than a walk through door into the garage, indicating this may be a 2.5 car garage and a fraud?
Jackson briefly discussed the three-car garage. I agree that it makes the home look larger and gives the indication of more wealth. A few of these homes do have more than two cars, yet often they are parked in the driveway because the three-car garage has become a basement addition (meaning that it stores a lot of stuff, leaving no room for cars!).
Another trend seems to be the attempt to hide the garage and make the door not visible from the street view of the home. Maybe it is so the house appears to be larger than it really is; a number of the homes pictured above even put drapes/shades in the garage windows so it looks like the rest of the house. Most of the homes pull off the look from a dead-on view, but the last two houses pictured failed, as they are actually on a corner lot. Everyone can clearly see their "front" facade is a fake as the garage is visible from the side street.
At the complete opposite end of the spectrum, some homes seem to feature the garage as an element of the home. By building on top of the garage, as is so vital in the raised-ranch style, homeowners can utilize upward space on a narrow lot (much like skyscraper developers).
Other home builders seem to push the garage way further out in front than the rest of the home. It must also be to maximize square footage by building back into the lot, as in the ranch pictured above. The second home's garage seems to be wider than the front of the home itself. (Dolores Hayden calls these homes "snout houses", which I think is very appropo.)
This breezeway from the garage to the main part of the house allows a nice view of the backyard from the street... These people now have three front entrances to their home. Where to ring the doorbell if you're selling candy bars?
This also seems to be another added-on mudroom, though the stairs give the side entrance a front entrance feel.
This home, (probably built between 1988-2000 like most homes in my development) appears to have a mudroom. However, it is nothing more than a walk through door into the garage, indicating this may be a 2.5 car garage and a fraud?
Jackson briefly discussed the three-car garage. I agree that it makes the home look larger and gives the indication of more wealth. A few of these homes do have more than two cars, yet often they are parked in the driveway because the three-car garage has become a basement addition (meaning that it stores a lot of stuff, leaving no room for cars!).
Another trend seems to be the attempt to hide the garage and make the door not visible from the street view of the home. Maybe it is so the house appears to be larger than it really is; a number of the homes pictured above even put drapes/shades in the garage windows so it looks like the rest of the house. Most of the homes pull off the look from a dead-on view, but the last two houses pictured failed, as they are actually on a corner lot. Everyone can clearly see their "front" facade is a fake as the garage is visible from the side street. 
At the complete opposite end of the spectrum, some homes seem to feature the garage as an element of the home. By building on top of the garage, as is so vital in the raised-ranch style, homeowners can utilize upward space on a narrow lot (much like skyscraper developers).
Other home builders seem to push the garage way further out in front than the rest of the home. It must also be to maximize square footage by building back into the lot, as in the ranch pictured above. The second home's garage seems to be wider than the front of the home itself. (Dolores Hayden calls these homes "snout houses", which I think is very appropo.)Of course, the garage is no longer just for a car or storage. Many homes have converted their garages into family rooms or rec rooms. My aunt actually knocked part of her garage out to build a master bedroom on the bottom floor; she still has a garage door, and the house looks the same from the outside but since the garage is shallower, she can no longer park a car in there. Also, there are a number of homes on my street which have screened-in garages in the summer. I don't know if this is a Buffalo thing, but it's very common to see people playing ping pong or sitting on lawn chairs inside their garage through a screen in the summer. When the Sabres were in the playoffs (seems like a loooong time ago) screened-in garage parties were the norm, as the weather was breaking and rec rooms had invaded the parking spaces. A popular example of the all-purpose garage is that of Tim "the Toolman" Taylor on Home Improvement. He used his attached garage as a workshop, mostly for his hotrod restoration project, but in Season 1, episode 21, Jill invaded the "man space" with a pottery wheel and aromatherapy candles. I couldn't find the episode anywhere online, maybe one of you will have better luck; it's called "A Battle of Wheels." Jill also used the garage for laundry, especially after Tim souped up the washing machine.
