Just a thought...you say there’s an up-step from the garage into the house. So it’s not a full step — maybe 4 inches or so?
Would it work to build a small platform there and have the ramp go away from the utility area? It would be a small ramp with a very gentle slope if it’s built off of a shallow platform. And if it runs along side the wall, that would keep it out of the way.
The laundry area in the garage is just to the left as you go out the door. It sets back just slightly to make it out of my reach from the door. The upstep is not terribly high, you are probably right in saying it was probably 4 to 5 inches. I don’t know who I would get to build the ramp and if it would be acceptable to do it in the eyes of the homeowner. The one at the front door is removeable, one built against a wall in the garage would probably have to be anchored to the wall to make it stable...and it would probably have to be build fairly wide to make it possible for me to turn to go in the door and to keep me from slipping off the edge.