After four or five phone calls, you’ll have a good feel for which facilities to visit. It’s a good idea to call before you go, just to be sure that the storage operator will be available and not have an appointment with another tenant.

Here are a few thoughts about rental price as a factor in your decision. As a storage owner, I have noticed when I offer a really low rate as a special, I get tenants who don’t care much about their stored items. I have had tenants move in and not even put a lock on their unit door. I have had tenants put bags of sugar and rice in their unit which attracted pests and made a mess in their unit, but also in the units next door. If you are going to store used auto parts, it might not matter. If you are going to store almost anything else, it will matter. So don’t go for a price that is too cheap. It will cost you in the long run.

1. As you arrive at the facility, take a look around the outside. Is the facility nice looking? Is it clean?
2. Does the property have a fence? Is there a gate? 
3. Do you see night lights? Do you see any cameras? 
4. When you walk into the office, is it clean and neat? 
5. Are you greeted promptly and is the self storage operator friendly? 
6. Do you feel comfortable when you’re there? Pay attention to your intuition. 
7. Does the property manager show you an actual unit?  Is it clean and ready to rent? 

If you like what you see and how you are treated at a self storage facility and they have the size storage unit you are looking for, then a few minutes of paperwork is all that's left to do.

If you know that you’re going to use a storage unit for a period of a year or more, ask for a discount for paying in advance. One big advantage of paying in advance is having your rate locked in. Rates at self storage rarely go down and often do go up. Paying 12 months in advance locks in the rate for 12 months. If you’re paying rent in advance, be sure that you understand clearly and have in writing what the refund policy will be if you have to move out before the year is up. The refund should be fair to you and to the facility.

Most storage facilities accept credit cards, so you can use one of your rewards credit cards and get free travel or cash back. Paying in advance or automatically having your credit card charged will save you time and money. First, you won’t be using your time and gasoline to go to the facility each month to make a payment and second, you will never have a late charge for forgetting to pay your bill.

Where to go From Here

6 Ways to Make Sure Your Self Storage Will be Convenient discusses the different parts of access that will affect how easily you can use your storage unit.   Site Contents gives you an overview of the site and a quick summary of each page.