Mover Storage Versus Self Storage: Which is Best for You?

Anyone who has taken inventory of what they own knows that humans, especially in this modern era, own a lot of items.

Studies have pointed to an approximate number of items the average American owns. The number is 300,000 individual items. Another shocking statistic is that a quarter of people who own garages use them for the storage of items and not vehicles.

You might argue that you own less but even at a third of that number, there is a lot to move when you want to relocate. This is a major factor that complicates moving.

Storage services have become popular because people in some cases cannot store all their items in their homes. Another function of storage is helping in getting a head start on your moving.

Some people pack what they won’t need for a while and send it to storage facilities.

All these functions emphasize the importance of storage services to human lives.

The question that usually follows the need for storage is “What storage type is best for me? Is it self-storage or mover storage?”

Mover Storage

This form of storage is one where a moving company (mover) takes the items you want to store from your home and stores them in their facility. The storing is done for you.

It is a very common service for long-distance moves that involve many miles. Items are temporarily stored at transit locations until they are taken to the destination.

This service can be a full-service where even the packing of the items is done for you. It is becoming more and more common for people to select this service willingly.

This is because it comes with its benefits which no one can ignore.

Benefits of Mover Storage

1. Security:

The safety of your items is very important. It is important to you and it is important to the company you hire to store them.

Storing your items at your friend’s place might be cheaper but not secure. The level of security your things will get at a friend’s place is average at best.

If the security of your items is paramount to you, then mover storage is the best decision.

Moving companies usually have 24 hours surveillance on their property. If you entrust your stuff to a moving company, know that your stuff is being guarded carefully.

Also, no one but you who hired the company will have access to your items.

1. Responsibility

Sometimes, things go wrong while moving. Remember that there can be as many as 300,000 things in transit. Mistakes might be made or accidents might occur.

A benefit of selecting a mover to store your items is that in the event of an accident or mistake where your items are lost or damaged, the company is supposed to take full responsibility and fix or replace the items.

This is particularly true when the client has paid for coverage or insurance services.

If you store your items yourself, you take full responsibility for any damage that occurs even if you aren’t the one that caused the damage.

1. Convenience

One benefit that attracts most clients to mover storage service is how convenient the service is. There are different tiers of services offered under mover storage but, even the least service brings huge convenience.

Imagine packing all your items, loading them into a moving truck, driving the truck to a location, unloading the items, and arranging them neatly in the storage facility yourself.

That is tedious work and most people know this. So, they hire someone else to do all that work while they focus on other things. This is the premise for mover storage.

1. Storage Quality

Items are of different types. That means they can take different levels of stress. This implies that the quality of the place where the items are to be stored is very important.

Mover storage generally gives better storage quality than self-storage. This of course depends on the company, however, most movers have high-quality services.

Moisture in a sealed room can ruin a lot of items including clothes, wood, and paper.

Most movers in a bid to keep their clients design their facilities to handle such problems.

1. Cost

This might not seem like an advantage when you see the quote for storing an item in a mover’s storage facility. However, in many cases, people need storage when they are moving.

If you hire a moving company to move your items and store them together, you will, in most cases get a moving and storing bundle.

You might even be offered discounts that will make the cost of storage cheaper than hiring for storage services alone.

Drawbacks of Mover Storage

As with many things, there are downsides to hiring a moving company to handle your storage needs.

The first downside is the cost. Yes, it is also an advantage but for those moving within a very restrictive budget, adding storage to their moving needs might be too much to handle. Mover storage usually requires a hefty down payment.

Another disadvantage is the lack of control you will have over your items. For the period you submit your items, you aren’t in charge of it. Yes, you can head to the facility and add or remove an item but that will be done under the terms and conditions the company sets. You can’t just walk in and access your belongings.

Self-Storage

Self-storage as the name suggests is a storage service where you take full responsibility for storing your items. You are the one that loads the items into storage and you walk away with the key to the storage unit where your items are.

In recent times, self-storage has added the convenience of transporting items for you. You will still have the key to the storage unit and other aspects of self-storage will still apply.

When you are ready to take away your items, you will be responsible for their transportation to your home or where you want to take them.

Benefits of Self-storage

1. Cost

The biggest attraction to using self-storage is the cost. It is cheaper in most cases than mover storage. This is because many of the services you pay for in mover storage are done by you.

You will be the one to organize the packing and transportation of the items you intend to store. So, this cost is left to you.

You can rent a truck to move the items or use your vehicle to make the trip.

1. Access

Another attraction to self-storage is the free access to your items. In most cases, self-storage gives you 24 hours access to your things that are in storage.

You don’t even need to ask for a key. You are the one with the key. This means you can add or subtract whatever you want from the storage unit. You are paying for the space and not the volume of items you store.

Access will be good for those who will be storing their things for a while. It is common for such access to be important where your new apartment isn’t ready. You might need some things from time to time.

1. Privacy

You are the person with access to the storage unit. So, you are in charge of what is put there and what is removed. If you want to store things you don’t want others to see, self-storage is the way to go.

You can drive to the unit, load what you want to store, and drive out. No one will be involved.

Note, though, that illegal substances won’t be allowed by storage companies.

Drawbacks of Self-Storage

The safety of the items you place in self-storage is highly dependent on the company you hire and your carefulness as well.

The company you hire might have mediocre security, watching over your things only during working hours. You could also make a mistake and give your access key to the wrong person.

The quality of the storage unit can also be a drawback. As the service gets more popular, it is getting better. Still, in many cases, the storage units given aren’t as good as the ones used in mover storage.

Another disadvantage is the liability. If something gets missing from your storage unit or gets damaged, you will take responsibility because the company didn’t store it for you. So, get third-party insurance if you want to use self-storage.

Which is Best for You?

We have examined both methods of storage. It might be clear now that the storage that is best for you depends on the nature of your circumstance.

If you will be storing for long periods, self-storage is a better option because of cost and access. If you are making a long-distance move, mover storage is the best option because it can be bundled with your moving expenses.

If you are in search of a storage company, contact Three Movers. We offer both self-storage and mover storage services.