Storage is a definite advantage for almost everyone. If you’re moving house it provides a valuable buffer, keeping down the stress on moving day. If you’re running a small business, it’s a flexible, low effort answer to the question of warehousing your inventory. To the renting generation, who share flats and houses without the luxury of garages or attics, it offers relief to those trying to fit the clutter of an adult life into a single rented room.
It’s likely, therefore, that at some point you’re going to need a storage unit. Unfortunately, there’s no system in place to ensure that when that time comes, you also have the money to spend on one! In fact, when you’re looking for storage, you’re often squeezed in some way and another outlay could be quite uncomfortable! If you look at the storage prices London offers, it can be quite discouraging.
Today we’re offering some guidance for getting a good deal on your storage, so it doesn’t break the bank when you need it.
Do Your Research
The first thing you can do is prepare thoroughly. Look at the local storage units available to you – if you’re using them regularly to access your business inventory, you’ll need an option that’s very easy to access. If it’s a one-off move, or storage while you’re out of the country, it’ll be less inconvenient for you to go further afield.
Make a note of the prices, and also any helpful policies, like a price match, a discount for first time customers or reduced rates for long term contracts. All of these could be useful.
Also, research your own needs – calculate what capacity of storage you need, and if you can reduce that in any way. Space is what you’re paying for, so one of the keys to saving money is taking up less space! Work out how long you’ll need a storage facility for too. Shorter stays are cheaper on the face of it, but lower rates are often available for long term customers, so arranging life to keep your items in storage for six months or more may be a viable, valuable tactic.
Get Quotes
One of the important things you can do before you commit to a storage company is get quotes from multiple different businesses.
All these companies are competing for your custom, so let them know you’re shopping around and get ready to receive preferential rates. If the storage solution you really want to use isn’t the cheapest, let them know you’ve received a lower quote elsewhere and they’ll likely match it! Your research into price is only the start of the story here, and when you call to discuss what you need, you could find it very different.