Over the course of their lives, people tend to buy things and hang onto them for practical or sentimental reasons . Whether that’s the chainsaw that was bought as a birthday present after Dad went on a DIY binge and now sits gently rusting in the garage waiting for the time that the new couch needs dismantling and sent to the tip, or the leopard print dress Aunty Jane swears will come back into fashion hiding away in a cupboard.
However, for many homeowners, there comes a point where they have to say “enough is enough.” Nobody wants piles of clutter to build up at home, as this can make the home hard to maintain and can cause unnecessary stress.
The solution? Put items into storage so that they are accessible at a later date, but are not in the way to disrupt day-to-day life. There are two main choices: whether to pay to have items put in a self-storage unit looked after by a reputable storage in Perth company, or to find places at home to keep possessions out of the way.
This guide weighs up some of the key financial, practical and emotional factors that need to be considered.
Cost
The first thing to consider is finances. Whilst it costs nothing to shift boxes up into the attic and store them there for months on end, there are also plenty of affordable storage in Perth companies that offer cost-effective solutions to clutter.
If money is one of the main reasons that self-storage does not seem like a viable solution, it might be a good idea to have a ‘trial run’ with a storage in Perth company that offers monthly rolling contracts. This takes the pressure off being tied into contracts and struggling to make payments.
Practicality
Practicality is next, and this needs to be weighed up carefully. Storing items at home requires enough attic or basement space to comfortably fit everything that will be tucked away – if there is not enough room in the house this can lead to unused or bulky possessions merely being shifted about from room to room, creating the type of clutter that sensible storage is designed to be reduced in the first place.
However, premise storage can be practical in another way: storing items at home means that they can easily be accessed at a moment’s notice.
The flipside of this is a problem with self-storage: if Dad’s chainsaw is finally needed to deal with that bothersome tree in the garden, it can be time-consuming and frustrating to have to drive halfway across town in order to retrieve the tool from storage.
Sentimentality Value of Possessions
Human beings are deeply sentimental creatures. There are many items that no longer serve an immediate or potential purpose in people’s homes but are kept close at hand because of sentimental value.
A key example of this is children’s clothes and toys. Despite children growing up and flying the nest to start adult lives of their own, how many parents around the world insist on keeping items from their son or daughter’s childhood? The answer probably runs into the millions. For these parents, and other people who keep sentimental items at home, the thought of something like a treasured family heirloom or a vintage guitar from band practices many moons ago ending up in a storage container is not something that can be considered lightly.
Moving House
Moving house is one of the most stressful events that people have to deal with. Packing up an entire home’s worth of possessions and making sure that they arrive safely at the new house is difficult enough with things that are used often. This stress is exacerbated when having to move yet another set of belongings, especially if they have been tucked away out of use for however long.
This particular worry is taken care of by keeping items in a self-storage unit. It allows people to move freely, safe in the knowledge that the possessions are being looked after carefully by professionals.
Premises storage can be impractical when moving house, but self-storage isn’t hassle free when it comes to moving house either. For example, moving cities or countries with items that need to be put in self-storage is a logistical challenge that often takes a lot of careful planning.
These are just a few things that should to be considered when deciding between premises versus self-storage.
