Five (Legal) Alternative Uses for a Storage Unit
Americans love our things. We love our stuff so much that we’ll rent small rooms away from home just to store all the stuff that won’t fit anywhere else—about 20% of people in the US pay for storage space . Most of these people use their storage units for what they are intended – they pack furniture, boxes of belongings, and even larger items like cars or appliances into them.
But storage can be much more than just a place to dump all that junk you can’t squeeze into your tiny abode. In fact, storage can be the perfect place for many other things. They are safe, climate controlled and relatively private. Not to mention cheap: they cost an average of $185 per month . If you check your local laws and read your lease carefully, a storage unit can be a cost-effective place to do much more than just store things.
What the laws allow
First things first: there are a lot of laws regarding storage units and what they can and cannot be used for. These will vary from region to region, but there are a few constants. First of all, you absolutely can’t live in a closet – so don’t imagine that you can throw down a rug and futon and sleep in there every night. You also can’t use a storage unit as an office in the sense of literally running a business from it (although, as we’ll see, you can use it for a business).
And if you read the storage facility contract, you’re probably not allowed to store food or animals there either. There may be many other restrictions in place, so if you view the storage unit as anything other than a dump, you should read your lease carefully—breaking it could result in eviction.
Create a personal gym
If you’d rather not go to the gym every month and sweat in front of complete strangers, or if you have a ton of great exercise equipment that you can’t comfortably fit in your current home, then a storage unit can be a great place. set up a small personal gym . It takes all that equipment out of the house and gives you a quiet, private place to workout.
Not every storage facility will allow this—local zoning laws may prohibit it. But many establishments won’t mind as long as you don’t stay there overnight or try to stock gym snacks there. It’s best to speak directly with the facility’s management before renting a space to make sure it’s legal and that they have no objections.
Use it as a conference room
You cannot operate a business from a storage unit in the sense that you sit at a desk and list that unit’s address as your business address. But you can use this storage as a place to get things done. Whether it’s a place where you conduct phone calls or video conferences in complete privacy (as opposed to sitting in a cafe with your laptop on your lap shouting over the crowd), or simply a place where you bring your laptop to work every day. In a quiet environment (most storage facilities offer free Wi-Fi), a storage facility can help you present a calm, professional face to existing or potential clients and clients.
Manage your inventory
Another way a storage facility can help your business is by using it as a warehouse. As long as the things you store there don’t violate your lease (if you need to store food there, that won’t work), you can avoid inventory piling up in the house. This is ideal for people who sell products through Amazon, eBay, Etsy or other online portals, but any business can benefit from having a place to store spare parts or supplies.
A storage unit is also a great place to store business documents and unused equipment. If it’s a seasonal business, such as landscaping, storage space can be a cheap and safe way to preserve your lawn equipment during the winter months.
Make your art
Storage units are simply boxes with empty space. Legally, you can actually use the space however you want, as long as the lease allows it. A great way to use it as an art or music studio or rehearsal space .
You’ll need to check with the facility to make sure there are no objections, but a storage facility can be an ideal place to paint, sculpt, dance, or practice (or even record) music in a private, safe, climate-controlled area. for less than $200 a month. You can also use your storage unit as a workshop – even a mechanic shop where you work on small vehicles. There are some limitations here depending on how much power you need and whether the job involves flammable or hazardous materials (again, talking to site management is probably a great idea), but in general you can use your storage unit. as a creative space it is very effective.
Practice yoga
A storage area can be a surprisingly calm and meditative place. If you’ve ever dreamed of a zen zone where you could meditate or just be, or a place where you could lay out your yoga mat, play soothing sounds and practice your favorite poses to your heart’s content, then the storage unit is for you – a great alternative if you don’t have a free room for it in your house. A personal yoga studio is a natural use of storage space in many ways, accessible at any time that fits your schedule.