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Why Self-Storage is a National and International Success Story
One of the big success stories of the last two years has been the growth of the self-storage industry, both in this country and overseas. Across the world as a whole, the sector is predicted to grow by almost 50% in the next five years.
Hamiltons Removals, who have two personal storage sites in the heart of East Anglia, examine some of the key reasons for this trend, which was first reported by global market researchers ReportLinker.
The Increasing Cost of Rent
This particularly applies in larger towns and city centres where the demand for housing is still high. London is a prime example of this (as are many Asian cities), because there has been a significant population increase in the past few years.
As a result of the increasing cost, some renters may have to opt for somewhere smaller than they would ideally like, which means they may have possessions that they can’t fit into their new home.
Another effect of the increasing cost of rent is that people move more frequently (particularly the younger generation). Often in an attempt to find somewhere more affordable. As a result, this sometimes means a smaller home and less room for possessions.
Downsizing
Some younger tenants and homeowners are opting for a minimalist approach, and doing this as a lifestyle choice. This is allied with the increasing trend for urbanisation. In large cities like London (as in many Asian countries) smaller properties with very little storage space are increasingly becoming the norm.
And, of course, the older generation are continuing to downsize as they switch from larger family homes to smaller ones in retirement.
Personal Reasons
Just because there is an uncertain situation in the world at the moment with Covid and the conflict in Ukraine, it doesn’t stop the demand for storage space. Some of the reasons why people use self-storage are as old as time itself, such as death and divorce. Splitting up households, or making them smaller, also inevitably means house moves and upheaval, and the chance that items will need to be put into storage.
Financial Reasons – and Covid Effects
Businesses are dispensing with large offices because of people working from home, and so either downsizing or getting rid of offices completely. As a result, they need somewhere secure for stock or office equipment. Office rentals can be expensive, so self-storage is a often a better financial proposition.
The domestic market has also increased because of the switch to working from home. For many people creating an office space at home meant other items had to go. The same applied to students returning home and learning remotely rather than at school or university.
The Bounceback
Now that the world economy is coming out of Covid-19 restrictions, there is an improved economic outlook for the USA, Asia and Europe. This has prompted an optimistic forecast for the self-storage sector for the years ahead, particularly in the USA.
As people get more confident economically, they will acquire more possessions – and they won’t be able to find room for them in their homes, so will need to put some older items into storage.
Personal Storage in East Anglia with Hamiltons Removals
Hamiltons have two Safe N Stored sites at Harleston and Aldeby, which should meet all of your self-storage needs.
The Harleston site, which offers self-storage rooms of different sizes, is currently open Monday to Friday from 09:15 am – 17:15 pm (call our sales team if you want to visit outside these hours). The premises are protected around the clock by CCTV cameras and alarms which are linked to Norfolk Police.
The Aldeby site has self-storage containers from 5’ to 20’ in size. This site also has the capacity to store larger items such as caravans, motorbikes and trailers. The containers are also protected by CCTV and have both secure key fob entry and high-security padlocks. If you would like to know more, call us on 01379 855203 or click here.
Why Early Spring is a Good Time to Declutter
For many people, the festive season – or just after – is a good time to declutter the house. However, having a major clearout in early spring has a lot of advantages as well. Here Hamiltons Removals, who offer special kits and packing materials for moving house from our Norfolk base, explain some of the key reasons why you should delay your decluttering until March.
You Need the Space
You may be able to get rid of things which have been replaced or updated with Christmas presents. Also, you may be able to start thinking about replacing all the winter clothing you either haven’t worn in the last few months (if you haven’t, do you really need it at all?) or putting it into self-storage and replacing it with summer wear. Either way, your wardrobes and chests of drawers will have a lot more room.
The same applies outside the house in your garage and garden shed. You can get rid of all the paraphernalia which has built up over the winter and if you didn’t use it last summer, then get rid of it now before summer rolls around again.
It’s a Practical Use of Your Time
The chances are you are at home anyway, because the weather means it’s too cold or wet to do much outside or anything in the garden. Decorating and home improvement projects may also not be a good idea at the moment for similar reasons (having the windows open while you paint, for example, makes it unpleasantly cold as well as a chore). It is best to use the time constructively on something like decluttering.
Ahead of a Spring Clean
Decluttering now will make that big spring clean a lot easier in a month or two’s time as well. This is because by putting items into storage, selling them or giving them away you will generate more space and make getting into the nooks and crannies of the house much easier. Self storage is a particularly good idea if you want to clean the carpets in your home and you need somewhere to put big items of furniture during the work for a few weeks.
For Financial Reasons
You will probably be feeling the effects of the financial outlay of Christmas and winter energy bills. So it is more than likely you could do with the extra cash that decluttering will bring by selling items second hand or via an online auction site such as eBay and Facebook Marketplace.
You could also help the finances of others too, such as charity shops, who often experience a drop in donations after the initial post-Christmas rush.
If You Plan to Move House
If moving house is on your list of objectives for the year, then why not make a good start on the decluttering now ahead of time? By getting rid of those items that you no longer use or have never used, you will be making the whole moving process much simpler and less expensive. It will also give you good practice when it comes to packing all your possessions up and deciding what items you want to keep, and which you will discard, sell, or give away.
Packing Materials for Moving House in Norfolk and Suffolk
Hamiltons Removals supply small, medium or large decluttering kits via our online shop, which also contain a selection of cartons, tape, packing paper and bubble wrap, plus marker pens and inventory sheets.
We also have two self-storage facilities at Harleston and Aldeby. These are ideal self storage solutions if you live in Suffolk or Norfolk and need somewhere to keep your items before any house move or spring clean.