If your stuff appears to be overcrowding your St. George rental home, you may be thinking if you should rent a storage unit. Yet, before you sign a contract, you should carefully examine your situation. Is it really necessary to have a storage unit? Or are there are other strategies to manage your belongings? To help you answer this question, we will talk about some of the reasons why you might – or might not – need a storage unit.
Too Much Stuff
One of the main explanations people rent a storage unit is because they have too much stuff. This might happen when downsizing to a smaller home, when moving, or when between homes. Other individuals don’t have space for their collections, and others have inherited items they don’t want or aren’t actively using.
However, owning too much stuff isn’t necessarily a good reason to rent a storage unit. This is particularly the case if you compare the amount you’ll spend on the monthly rent versus the value of the items you wish to retain. Investing an extra $100 a month on a storage unit, for example, means those items will cost you $1,200 a year to own and not use. Before renting a storage unit, it’s advantageous to examine why you want to keep the things you like to store and, if applicable, look into other alternatives to a storage unit.
Storing Valuables
Probably the thing that can substantially change the equation on value and storage is if you have valuable items you want to keep but don’t have space for them at home for one reason or another. Generally, if you have high-end valuables, be sure to choose climate-controlled storage. Things like artwork, musical instruments, antiques, photos, and electronics can be damaged by heat or cold and should never be kept in an outdoor storage station.
Creative Alternatives
If you have belongings you want or need to keep, but it doesn’t appear worth the cost of a storage unit, try another inventive method to keep your stuff – or not. In general, acquiring too much stuff is a product of being unwilling to let things go, even if they will likely never use it. If you can overcome your attachment to these goods, you may be able to sell or give them away instead.
As an alternative, if you have items you can’t hand over but don’t necessarily need a storage unit to keep, think about asking a friend to keep or store it for you until you have the ability to take it back. A friend or family member with an empty spare room could make use of the antique furniture, piano, or framed artwork you don’t currently need but would like to keep. Or else, get creative with the spaces in your own home to make room for your goods. Underneath staircases, attics, and garage shelving can all increase usable storage space and allow you to keep a few more of your cherished belongings.
While a storage unit may be necessary in some cases, most of the time, there are other and less expensive ways to deal with having more stuff than we need. In the end, the final decision is yours! But, if you do feel like a bigger rental home would give you not only more living space but more storage space as well, give Real Property Management Southern Utah a call! You can browse our listings and apply online when you find one that catches your eye.
We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.
