Life changing events, moves and renovations at home or at the business often remind us of how many items, papers and materials have accumulated with us over time.
Nowadays, living space, especially in major cities such as Berlin, Hamburg or München, is becoming more and more expensive and most people who are running out of space look for storage space outside the home.
Right at the beginning, the following questions arise:
- How much space do I actually need?
- How much does renting a storage unit cost and what is included in the price?
- Which Self-Storage providers are there near me and which one should I choose?
- How securely are my things stored?
- Is it worth renting Selfstorage if I do not have a car/driving licence?
In the following, we will answer all of these questions. We can already tell you, however, that even hopeful customers without a vehicle or driving licence can easily store even large and bulky items in storage units.
Full-Service-Storage operators, such as, for example, BOXIE24, handle the entire storage process, from collection in your living room through transport and storage to complete or partial return delivery.
What is a Self-Storage unit?
Selfstorage comes from English and means self storage. Self-Storage landlords offer secure and monitored storage units in different sizes in which you can put your property behind lock and key.
A rented storage room serves to put away superfluous items or things that you only need occasionally. Among the most frequently stored goods of private households are furniture, files, winter/summer items, including tyres, as well as books.
Commercial customers use Self-Storage for tools, machines and bookkeeping records that take up a lot of space in the business but are not needed often.
How long you keep the things with Self-Storage landlords depends on your contract term. Renting storage units is suitable for both short term and long term storage. As a rule, you receive discounts if you plan the longer term rent of a storage unit.
What do you need to rent a storage space?
If you decide on a specific Self-Storage provider and want to sign a rental contract there, you should create a checklist of required information. As a rule, you will be asked to present the following papers and information:
- A valid proof of identity (Personalausweis or Reisepass).
- Your address, possibly with proof of address (invoice, correspondence from authorities, etc.).
- Your preferred payment method (Lastschrift, card payment, PayPal).
- An insurance policy for Hausratversicherung and/or Haftpflichtversicherung with a stated insured amount (to ensure that your items are also sufficiently insured in the event of damage).
- When signing the contract, you must pay the first rental amount and, if applicable, also a deposit.
What you can store in your storage space and what not
If you have decided on a rented storage room, you will already have certain ideas of what you want to store. As a rule, customers rent storage units for the following items:
- Furniture
- Clothing
- Files
- Boxes with household goods
- Tools
- Household appliances (make sure that these have been cleaned beforehand)
- Files, books and other paper products
Reputable Self-Storage providers will ensure that the building or the storage unit is always kept clean and dry and that no moisture forms that could damage your items.
It is your task to ensure that you do not store any prohibited items in the rented storage unit. The unwanted goods include:
- Easily flammable materials, including oil, lubricants, paints & varnishes (note that car batteries could also fall into this category)
- Illegal items, including weapons, drugs, unlawful or extremist material
- Food and other perishable goods
- Animals
Please note that storing prohibited items can invalidate your entire insurance policy if damage occurs. Therefore read the guidelines on prohibited items of your Self-Storage provider.
How much does a storage space cost per month?
The rent for a storage unit first of all depends on your location and the space required for storage. In major cities such as München, Berlin, Frankfurt or Hamburg, storage rent is generally higher than in smaller cities and towns. In addition, there are also considerable price differences within individual cities, depending on whether the storage unit is located in the city centre or in the industrial areas outside.
In München, for example, a small storage unit of 2 m2 costs about 100 Euro per month. In neighbouring Augsburg, this basic amount already drops to 60 Euro per month. This is only the basic amount. In many cases, further ancillary costs and a deposit are added. Possible ancillary costs include, among others:
- Electricity consumption
- Insurance
- Invoice or admin fee
- Fire protection
If you carry out a price comparison between different Self-Storage landlords in your area, pay attention to the fact that storage units are available both with monthly and weekly rent. To find out the monthly rent in order to compare the offers, calculate:
Rent amount Euro x 52 : 12
In many cases you may be able to negotiate discounts, especially if you plan to rent the storage unit over a longer period. In addition, you should ensure that the negotiated price also remains in place over your contract period and cannot be pushed up arbitrarily.
Electricity and or internet costs when renting storage space
Access to electricity is one of the things you only miss when you do not have it. Even in Self-Storage it can be advantageous to have a power connection in the storage unit, even if only to quickly charge the mobile phone or find out whether a stored device still works.
Some Self-Storage landlords therefore offer a number of storage units with a power connection. These are either charged at a flat rate or by a metered connection and added to the rent invoice as ancillary costs. Note that, especially with flat rates, an upper limit for electricity consumption is set.
If you rent a storage unit with electricity, you should observe the safety guidelines for using the sockets before signing the contract. Do these provide enough amperes for your needs? What may you, and what may you not, connect? What fire protection exists at the storage unit location?
In some cases, Self-Storage operators also offer internet coverage in your unit so that you can, for example, check a digital inventory list.
One time expenses: deposit and administration costs
Anyone who has ever lived as a tenant is familiar with the practice of a deposit. With this, the landlord wants to ensure that any damage to their property is covered. Deposits are also often required in the renting of Selfstorage facilities. These generally amount to one to two months’ rents, which are refunded at the end of the rental period, provided that the unit is left in good condition.
In some cases, a one time administration or set up fee could also be charged. You should clarify all ancillary costs and fees already before signing the contract in order to avoid unpleasant surprises.
Invoices for storage can generally be paid by Mastercard, Visa Card, PayPal or Lastschriften.
However, note that not every Selfstorage landlord requires deposits or administration fees. Look around for the best Selfstorage offers and find those that, in your opinion, have the fairest price performance ratio.
How do you find the best storage room size for your needs?
The price of your storage unit rent always depends on the size that you require. However, it can be difficult to find out how much space you need.
In doing so, you should note that you do not rent only the base/floor area, calculated in m². In most cases, you can stack your items upwards. Therefore the total volume, calculated in m³, plays an equally important role.
For maximum space utilisation, where you stack your things up to the ceiling, however, you should consider some safety measures:
- Buy or rent stackable storage boxes or storage containers made of sturdy plastic. Cardboard boxes are not suitable for stacking on top of each other and can pose a safety risk if the stack collapses.
- Pack your boxes with optimal space utilisation in mind.
- Use shelves or filing cabinets to organise your items or files also in height.
- Disassemble larger items such as furniture as far as possible in order to store them vertically as a flat pack.
- Fill empty spaces in furniture that cannot be dismantled with your stored items.
- Set up one or more aisles between your stored items so that accessibility is always ensured.
What storage size do I need?
Often you know that you need a storage room, but not how much area. For this reason, many Self-Storage providers offer a storage room calculator online with the help of which you can easily and quickly determine your needs.
With good size calculators, you are offered categories with different items that you only have to click. If you have found and clicked all your items on the list, the calculator shows you how much space in m² you need.
If you have not found all items or you are unsure whether the space is sufficient, then you can order half a storage room size more. You can later still scale up or down or upgrade.
If you want to store your entire household, you must expect a Self-Storage storage area of approximately 10 – 15 % of your living space. The same applies when it comes to individual rooms or Bueros whose furnishings you want to store. This method of calculation, however, does not take into account whether you are a minimalist or someone who can never throw anything away.
If it is easier for you to calculate in boxes, you must expect that 20 boxes stacked on top of each other require about 1 m².
If you are still unsure, you can at any time use the help of the customer service of your chosen Self-Storage landlord. Do not forget to provide photos of the items to be stored so that the landlord gets the right impression of the quantity.
Doors & access (covered loading area)
Access to the Self-Storage unit that you want to rent will become important at the latest on the day of storage. Then it becomes clear how good your Self-Storage landlord really is. To prevent problems, you should already before signing the contract inform yourself about the following:
- Is the loading area covered? If it rains, your belongings could already be damaged before storage on the way from the vehicle to the storage facility if your boxes/furniture get soaked.
- Are the corridors, lifts and doors wide enough for your items? This is especially important if you want to store furniture and larger items. Larger units often come with roller shutter doors so that moving in is not associated with bumping into edges and corners.
- Are hand trucks or trolleys offered to you when loading/unloading?
- Are the corridors well lit? After all, you do not want to fumble around in the dark when you are carrying heavy loads.
- Do you have 24/7 access to your unit or are you dependent on the opening hours of the Self-Storage provider? Also pay attention to restricted opening hours at the weekend, on public holidays or during the holidays.
Ventilation & dry/clean storage climate
If you leave the storage of your things to others, you naturally expect that they are stored well. The climate of the interior area of your unit plays a decisive role here.
Clothing, wooden furniture and paper products, including bookkeeping receipts and books, generally require a temperature above 10°C and below 30°C in order to be stored over a longer period.
Humidity also plays an important role. Not only can mould and mildew develop with too much humidity. Your textiles could also take on an unpleasant smell that does not disappear even after repeated washing. In connection with paper, foxing and wavy pages could arise, which can lead to your files no longer being readable.
Therefore make sure about the ventilation routines and climate control in your unit. Does your Self-Storage landlord maintain climate control such as air conditioning systems or heating in the entire building? Are there ventilation shafts in order to ensure air circulation and sufficient ventilation?
How do you find out whether your Self-Storage is also secure?
Besides the climate, securing your property is also of fundamental importance. Therefore, before storing your things, you should make sure of the security precautions and theft protection at your storage facility.
An appropriate security protocol includes, among other things:
- Video surveillance/CCTV
- Security personnel
- House alarm/alarm system
- Good locks
- Staffing by qualified personnel
- Access control through cards, apps or PIN codes
Adequate security of your property will also be important for your Hausrat/Haftpflicht insurance coverage. Therefore check with your Self-Storage landlord to find out which security measures are in place.
CCTV, alarm systems & access control
Most Self-Storage operators have some form of security measure to secure the stored items against break ins, theft or property damage. The quality, however, can vary greatly.
CCTV alone, for example, is only useful if it is monitored in real time. Looking through the recordings the next day, when the damage has already occurred, is little comfort.
Security guard teams also cannot be everywhere at the same time. Access restrictions through cards and PIN codes without further monitoring are also not sufficient, because cards/PINs can be stolen.
Ask your Self-Storage provider about the existing security protocol and make sure that more than one measure is in place.
Find out whether the entire building is secured and how warning signals, including repeated failed PIN attempts, are handled. In addition, you should ensure that only authorised persons registered with the Self-Storage landlord have access to the storage area.
Ask around whether your Self-Storage landlord is often plagued by theft and break ins. Customer reviews online and word of mouth can help here.
Behind lock and key: your own cylinder or smart lock?
In most cases, Self-Storage units nowadays are offered with an already existing locking system. In doing so, you will find a keypad or a card reader on the unit you have rented. Smart locks, which are operated via apps and can even be monitored, are also becoming increasingly popular.
In addition, in Self-Storage there is still the traditional method of the cylinder lock with the associated key.
The cheapest option is the cylinder lock solution. With this, only you have the key and full control over who has access to your unit. Note, however, that not all Self-Storage doors are suitable for the adaptation of a cylinder. In addition, keys are among the most commonly lost items in Germany. Self-Storage keys are no exception.
Smart locks, which are controlled digitally via apps, are generally an expensive matter and Self-Storage operators who offer this solution either charge a higher rent or add the smart lock costs to the invoice.
With smart locks, the physical key is replaced by a digital code. This cannot be lost, but can be exposed to other adversities. Power outages, system disruptions at the smart lock operator and a lack of specialist staff who can be called out in the event of problems or checks/inspections bring their own challenges.
Insurance & liability
If you store your inventory with Self-Storage providers, you are yourself liable for damage to the items. Some Self-Storage landlords offer basic insurance that, in most cases, does not cover the real value of your property.
Therefore Self-Storage landlords usually require proof of a Hausratversicherung to ensure that you are insured in the event of break ins, theft, vandalism, fire or Elementarschäden.
However, you yourself must also check your insurance policy, because many insurance contracts contain an outsourcing clause. This generally provides that your belongings are insured in Self-Storage only for a certain period. For longer storage outside the home, you often have to take out additional insurance.
Many storage unit landlords also offer Self-Storage insurances that are specifically tailored to outsourcing.
Note that your entire insurance policy can be declared void if you store prohibited or dangerous goods such as weapons or easily flammable materials in your unit. Particularly valuable items such as antiques and jewellery are also generally excluded from conventional Self-Storage insurance cover and their value is therefore not reimbursed.
If you suffer damage, you must immediately inform the police as well as your insurance. It is an advantage if you can provide photographic evidence for your damaged or stolen property. When storing documents and bookkeeping, you should always make a digital copy before you outsource your files.
Also read carefully the liability section in your Self-Storage rental contract and ensure that you are sufficiently covered when push comes to shove.
How does renting a storage room work?
After you have decided on a Self-Storage landlord, determined the size of the storage unit and have had availability confirmed, it is time to book the storage facility and move in.
Before storing, however, you must, in addition to the insurance policy, also organise transport in order to get your inventory to the storage facility. This involves a certain amount of time and further costs for you.
If you do not have a driving licence or dread driving a van or small transporter, you should perhaps consider a Full-Service-Storage provider such as BOXIE24.
Full-Service-Storage operators offer a complete package solution for Self-Storage. In doing so, the Full-Service landlords collect your things from you, take them to the storage facility and carry the boxes or items to the space you have rented. If you want to have your things back in whole or in part, this is also handled by the Full-Service-Storage landlord.
In doing so, you not only avoid the annoying carrying and driving, but also save valuable time and hassle. You also do not have to worry about annoying details such as the availability and navigation of loading ramps and hand trucks.
Contracts and notice periods (short term/long term, interim changes)
Besides the size of the rented storage room, the length of the period for which you need the storage facility also plays a role in the costs.
As a rule, storage unit rents over a longer period are cheaper than short term rents. This applies in particular if you pay the total amount for the entire period in full or in part in advance and thereby take advantage of discounts.
Short term rents, however, are more flexible and you can more easily adapt the contract to changed circumstances.
If you change your mind in the meantime with a long term contract, the notice period depends on the type of your contract and the guidelines of your landlord. Read the guidelines of your Self-Storage operator carefully, because the notice period is not legally regulated, but is based on the requirements of your landlord. Also pay attention to certain price clauses that give the landlord the right to increase the rent arbitrarily. Try to achieve a fixed price for a certain period during the contract negotiations.
If you want to change the storage unit size in the meantime, this will depend on the availability of storage space at your Self-Storage provider. Further costs can also arise here if you have concluded a long term contract for a certain storage unit.
Payment and invoice (billing cycle, what is charged/not charged)
Rents for Self-Storage are always paid in advance. With weekly contracts, as a rule a payment for four weeks is required.
Besides the agreed rent amount, further costs such as electricity consumption, insurances, smart locks and heating can also appear on the monthly invoice.
In addition, many Self-Storage providers also require one time charges, including deposits and processing fees when moving in/out. An invoice fee could be incurred if you, for example for business reasons, prefer to receive a paper copy instead of the now usual digital PDF billing.
Also note that private individuals and companies exempt from VAT must plan for the Mehrwertsteuer as an additional cost.
You can generally pay via SEPA/Lastschriften, by credit card payment and via PayPal.
If you are one of those who like to take time with payment, you must also expect late payment fees.
Terms and conditions & data protection
As with all contracts, you should read the AGB of your Self-Storage landlord thoroughly BEFORE you sign and not only when the problems have arisen.
When it comes to your rights and obligations, pay particular attention to:
- prohibited items and materials. This could also include the bucket with paint from the last renovation or the antique cabinet that you inherited from Oma.
- the opening hours and access restrictions. If you have hidden your children’s Christmas presents in Self-Storage, you should be sure that you can also take them out at Christmas.
- notice periods and refunds. Life can be adventurous and your circumstances can change. Make sure that your Self-Storage landlord is also aware of this.
- Additional unexpected charges such as cleaning costs, invoice and administration fees
You should also take a closer look at data protection, because after all your proof of identity and insurance policy are registered and stored digitally. Check what other data your Self-Storage operator stores about you, including access logs, payment methods and CCTV recordings.
In accordance with the Datenschutz-Grundverordnung (DSGVO), all businesses, including Self-Storage operators, must provide a specific person named in the AGB who is responsible for data protection.
Also note contract clauses regarding complaint and conciliation procedures.
If something about the above points does not seem right to you, you should think twice about signing the contract. Question delicate points and seek advice before you commit yourself to renting Self-Storage.
