There’s nothing better than a long adventure, but it can put you in a trick position when you’re in between rental contracts or wanting to rent out your home on Airbnb. If you’re having a gap year or even exploring the option of being a Digital Nomad, having to pay for your home back home can be a real drain on your wallet. If you’re heading away for more than a handful of months, then the best option may be to find a storage solution so you can unpack your house and end the contract, or have someone else move in and pay your bills for you! I’ve got plenty of times for how to safely store your things, so keep reading to learn more.
1) Self Storage Options
This is my favourite option because you’re not relying on anyone to keep your things safe. I once left a large suitcase with a friend while I travelled overseas, and she ended up moving herself and it became a game of pass the parcel with my suitcase while I was on the other side of the world. Using a professional storage company like Now Self Storage in Cardiff means that you don’t have to worry about a friend changing their mind, moving, or leaving themselves. The temperature regulated storage option ensures that your items are kept in the best condition possible while you’re busy ticking off your bucket list around the globe.
2) Consider Vacuum Packing
While it’s unlikely you have a professional vacuum packing machine, you can cheaply get some vacuum seal bags of Amazon which make an excellent choice for anything soft in your home – clothing, pillows, towels, rugs etc all do very well with vacuum packing. Taking the air out prevents humidity and moisture being an issue for your valuables and allows you to condense all of your things into a considerably smaller size.
3) Spring Clean Before You Store
One of the biggest mistakes I see people making is forgetting to spring clean before they put something into storage. Generally storage units are priced by size, so the more you store, the more it will cost. Try to be ruthless when deciding what to keep and store, as there’s nothing worse than storing some things for a year or two only to unpack them and wonder why you didn’t clear it out originally! Try to focus on storing things that extremely valuable – either in terms of sentimental value or monetary value. Everything else, can probably find a new home!
4) Ensure Have a Backup Contact
When you’re traveling, sometimes it can be hard for companies to contact you. It’s a good idea to have a backup contact at the storage facility so that if something happens with your payment or your storage unit, they can contact your backup contact to ensure that you don’t have issues with non payment on your valuables.
Storing your things while you’re traveling can be a great way to free up your home so you can break the lease, rent out the property, or just have space for visitors.
