Making the Most of Storage
Whether buying or selling a home, storage becomes an issue. Buyers want ample storage areas -- indeed, it can be a make-or-break feature when buying a home. Sellers need it both for eliminating clutter from rooms while showing a home, and for containing their own personal items. Learning how to best utilize the storage will increase the functionality and presentation of your home.
Once you've reduced the amount you would like to store - items have been sorted, unwanted and useless things have been discarded - presumably the remaining items needing storage are wanted, useful, and/or valuable in some way. Here are the steps that will ensure success:
Assess: Storage Areas and Items to Store
What you have and where you will store it are both questions that are pertinent to the task at hand. Storage of dishes or books, clothing or car parts, may require different solutions. The only way to do this is to take a good look. Simply having a lot of space is only part of the puzzle; being able to access your belongings is equally important.
Inventory the storage areas on your property to better understand "reality". Having an attic or basement does not mean that you have more storage if they are difficult to access, wet, unduly hot or cold, infested with mice or mold - so check these areas and really look at their condition. Similarly, cabinets and closets with particularly high shelving or excessively deep shelving provide wonderful storage for items that are not often in use.
Don't overlook non-traditional storage - alcoves, and places where storage furniture or built-in furniture could exist. Your space might have a perfect place to put an armoire, bench seat with storage, or built-in bookshelves. Mantels and large porches, sheds and garages often have places where storage is possible. If these areas are exposed to view, containers should be attractive and appropriate to the spot.
When assessing where to store each item, keep in mind that having items close to the location where they will ultimately be used is often essential to it having value. Items you cannot access might as well not be there. If you are keeping something, consider "charging it rent" - is it worth the space it takes up?
If in your assessment of space and items to store you have far more items than space, then further reduction of possessions might be in order. An alternative is to "find more space" by creating more storage in the home or on the property possibly by building an addition, garage, or shed. Otherwise, if you have more stuff than fits in storage, you will either live with it in your way day-to-day, or have to rent storage space out of the home, which is expensive and inconvenient for accessing your items. Or perhaps you just need a bigger home!
