Self-storage units help tenants save more than £4,500 a year

Choosing a self-storage unit over an extra bedroom could save renters hundreds of pounds each month

The aptly-named 'box room' is a common sight in most British households, but recent statistics show that tenants could be unnecessarily wasting their hard-earned cash on storing excess belongings in them.

A recent study by self-storage experts, Smart Storage, took average rents in a cross section of Liverpool, and found that renting a two-bedroom home and keeping additional possessions remotely could save the renters more than £450 each month.

At present, the average rental price of a two-bed property in Liverpool city centre is around £694 per calendar month. Rent almost doubles for the addition of an extra bedroom, with average rents costing £1,260 each month according to listings on property website Zoopla.

Smart Storage found that by harnessing a 50 sq ft storage unit alongside a two-bed, tenants will see their monthly outgoings drop by £457.28 if they opt to downsize to a room less. This is based on their smaller self-storage units costing from as little as £79.92 per month.

CEO of Smart Storage, Mike Wilson, commissioned the research to help people cut their living costs without losing the extra space they have become accustomed to.

He said: “It’s incredible how much tenants can save by simply choosing a local self-storage provider over an extra bedroom – which is usually a box room.

“Our storage units are within a few miles of the home and are extremely accessible. Most spare rooms are used to store all our clutter that we have no other space for, so why not choose a more practical cost effective option by moving the clutter out into a storage unit instead?”

The company offers units around the North West, with Liverpool being one of their largest sites. With space becoming a premium in most cities, people need access to as much extra room as they can get.

Mike added: "With 37 million square feet of storage available, it’s simply a case of bringing this to the public’s attention.

The cost of storage remains widely unknown to people, which is why it's more important than ever to highlight the benefits of choosing a storage unit over an extra room."

A typical bedroom size ranges from the equivalent of a 50 sq ft to 100 sq ft unit.

Rather than paying £1,260 per month for a third small box room, tenants can enjoy their two-bedroom property and 100 sq ft storage solution complete with insurance for £832.72, which is just as safe – if not safer – than an extra room.

Only the owner of the unit is able to access it, whereas anyone in the home will be able to enter the extra room, potentially increasing the risk of damage to anything stored within. Savings extend to the surrounding suburbs, where tenants can save up to £449 per month, and annual saving can amount to around £5,400.