It’s likely that, if you’ve got a son or daughter at university, they’ll be moving to a new house quite often over their three or four-year stint in higher education.
Whether it’s Christmas, Easter or the summer holidays, it can be a real pain for everyone when all of their belongings have to be transported back and forth from uni to the family abode.
Common reasons you may need to hire some student storage:
- There’s not enough room anymore at the family home – Since your teen moved out to continue their studies, you’ve turned their room into a storage closet, or you’ve had someone else come to stay on a long-term basis. Perhaps you’ve redecorated it, and it’s now a full-time office or gym space?
- You need to move belongings because you don’t feel they’re secure in student accommodation – Perhaps your son / daughter happens to live in a shared house where there aren’t suitable locks on bedrooms, or they’re living with at least one person who they don’t particularly trust… In which case, moving their items out during each holiday is the best option to keep them undamaged and safe.
- Your student has more stuff than will fit in your car – Over the first couple of years of uni in particular, they may have accumulated quite a few random items. Fancy dress costumes for parties, inflatables, bulky technology items, housewares… It may be a bit too much for one journey, and your son or daughter may not be willing to throw very much of it away to make room!
In general, moving back and forth between bases every few months can be very tiring and stressful – not a good start to anyone’s holiday or term time!
So, what are the options? Well, one tried and trusted solution is to keep your children’s belongings safe in a self-storage unit (maybe the kind made available by companies like https://ezstorit.com) for however many weeks or months you need at a time.
It can be the most hassle-free solution for stowing away your student’s valuables, and although some storage unit options can be pricey, it’s common for storage centres to offering favourable student rates.
What should you be considering if you’re looking for a rentable self-storage unit? Let’s go through some of the basics…
Finding the right centre for your storage needs
- It sounds obvious but has a look online to establish how many centres are available in your son or daughter’s university area.
- Also, most storage company websites similar to Storage Post, for instance, tend to include an ‘instant quote’ option, so you can get a quick idea of sizes vs length of time needed vs cost. Note that the price can be more or less expensive generally, depending on where in the country you’re looking for storage.
- Research student pricing / offers specifically for students – some companies offer hefty discounts, or even free weeks of storage. It’s all about finding the best deal. Sometimes, hiring a unit for a long-term period of time can unlock extra discounts, so always ask!
- Another good thing to do in the ‘research phase’ is to check out customer reviews of companies on sites such as FeeFo – how are they generally rated? Are people happy with the customer service levels and pricing? Reading user reviews can tell you a lot about what may be in store for you if you become a customer. You could also look on some consumer-focused forums for a more detailed insight into what people thought of companies X and Y.
- Ask your son / daughter whether they have a friend who also needs some storage space. It may be that they have a mate who would be willing to split the cost to share the storage unit with them. As a general rule, the more space you rent the greater the savings, so it might work out cheaper for them to go in on a larger space together. Students all have the same summer, Christmas and Easter holidays each year, after all!
- If you’re paying a visit to a couple of storage centres to investigate the facilities, ask about how their security is ‘geared up’ to protect their customers’ belongings, and what the access for customers is like. A good storage company will have 24/7 CCTV security as standard, for example. And how is each unit individually secured? Is 24/7 access for your son / daughter available?
- Finally, when you’re settling on a price for your student’s hoard, ask the storage company if they can throw in any extra perks, like free moving boxes, to seal the deal. The market is fairly competitive, so you stand a good chance of getting a deal that works for you – but you have to ask for it!
The above points should get you on the right track when it comes to choosing the right self-storage solution for you. Moving your student’s belongings needn’t be a headache. Just follow our tips above, and you’re unlikely to put a foot wrong!