College is a time when you grow as a person in many ways. You develop new hobbies, discover your likes and dislikes, and end up collecting more belongings as a result of your new lifestyle. All of this adds up to a lot of items you need in order make any dorm room or apartment you move into feel like your own. For the various transitioning situations you might find yourself in as a student, using self storage is a convenient and safe way to keep your belongings.
Here are some ways in which self storage can be helpful during your time as a student:
1. Use Self Storage to Make the Most of Your Living Space
Once you leave home for college you quickly learn that living in a dorm means less space. Making room for all your belongings becomes a logistic challenge, especially when you have to share your space with other students. This is where using self storage comes in handy as you can safely keep some items away from your room.
Here is a list of the most common belongings that are put into self storage:
- Furniture (couches, appliances, desks)
- Electronics (TVs, printers, computers)
- Sports gear (snowboards, ski equipment, etc.)
- Seasonal items (warm clothes, snowshoes, etc.)
- School projects
2. Avoid Moving Your Belongings Back Home for the Summer With Self Storage
As dorms close and leases end during the summer, you need to find a way to store your possessions until the new term begins in the fall. Oftentimes, it is impractical to take your belongings to where your folks live. Opting for a self storage unit during the summer months is the perfect solution as it is much more convenient than transporting everything back home — there may not even be space for it there. Simply search for a storage facility near the campus. Your items will be safe until you will need them again when school resumes. If you go to college in a big city such as Los Angeles, self storage can be a money saver as you will avoid paying moving costs. As it turns out, LA is one of the most expensive cities to move to.
3. Storage for In-Between Moves
If you are either renting and your lease is ending or you are temporarily renting off-campus during the summer break, using self storage can help bridge the gap between leases. When the new school year begins, it’s very easy to take your belongings from the storage unit into your new dorm room or your new apartment. You can even rent a storage unit with a friend in order to save even more on storage costs.
4. Go for Storage While Studying or Traveling Abroad
If summertime comes with an exciting study abroad program, you will need a temporary home for your belongings. With international traveling, you may want to make the best financial decision possible, so keeping an apartment while you are away is probably not the most cost-effective choice. Instead, you can use self storage to keep your belongings for the duration of your travel. All in all, you are either saving rent money or the hassle of transporting your items back to your parents’ home, which can also turn out to be costly and inconvenient.
5. Use Storage While You Look for Housing After Graduation
Post-graduation, you start a new life which often involves either relocation for a new job or simply moving in with friends after you leave the dorm. Either way, you’ll find that your temporary housing situation will most likely not allow you to find a home for all your possessions. If you want to pay less on rent you can choose a studio and get self storage for the rest of your belongings. This is a practical solution as you can keep your possessions safe without worrying about where they can be kept until you find permanent housing.
As for the best ways to find self storage units, rental websites like storagecafe.com that feature listings all across the US may be of great help.
Now that you know how to make the best use of self storage to make your life easier while you’re in college, you can prepare for the upcoming summer break without any worries.
