Much like other Colorado cities, Fort Collins experienced tremendous growth lately — its population increased by 18% since 2010, reaching 170,000. Many things attract people to Fort Collins. One is the opportunity to lead an outdoorsy lifestyle, with the city being the gateway to the Rocky Mountain National Park and Roosevelt National Forest.
Another important reason is the thriving local economy. The unemployment rate is currently about 3%, and there are ample opportunities for well-paying jobs offered by companies like Hewlett-Packard or Woodward. Combined with an affordable cost of living and a relaxed college-town vibe, it’s no wonder that the population of Fort Collins keeps getting bigger and bigger.
If you plan to relocate to Fort Collins — or if you already live here, making the most of the city’s many attractions and amenities — you should know that the local self storage market can help you better organize your home and your life. There are over 30 self storage facilities in Fort Collins, and prices vary from around $50 for small self storage units to over $200 for large storage units.
Here are some of the items that make the most sense to keep in self storage if you’re living in Fort Collins:
1. Sports equipment
Fort Collins is the ideal city for people who love spending time outdoors and practicing various sports. There’s something to do in every season, from skiing and snowboarding in the winter to hiking and camping during the warm seasons. Adventurous sports, like whitewater rafting or rock climbing, also have their local fans. One common concern for all these outdoorsy Fort Collins residents is how to store sports equipment properly during the months when it’s not in use.
From skis to snowboards to mountain bikes to camping gear, all these items take up a lot of storage space in your home closets, garage or basement. Also, all these items tend to be expensive, and it’s important that you ensure proper storage conditions to avoid damage. Self storage is a good option for these types of belongings. A 5’x5’ storage unit is large enough to hold smaller sporting equipment such as tents, snowboards, skis and so on. However, if you intend to store recreational vehicles such as snowmobiles or ATVs, you will probably need to rent a larger, 10’x10’ storage unit.
2. Seasonal items
Fort Collins experiences beautiful sunny summers and snowy winters, which means that homeowners need different types of tools and accessories to maintain and enjoy their backyards. A snowblower, a lawnmower, outdoor furniture, gardening tools, a barbecue grill — you probably own all of these, but depending on the item, you use it either during winter or the warm seasons, and they require a safe storage space while not in use. Simply storing them outside is not an optimal solution, as the environmental factors will shorten their lifespan. Most of us probably don’t have enough garage space for all the seasonal backyard and gardening items we own, so renting self storage and rotating your belongings depending on the time of year is a smart strategy.
3. Students’ belongings
Home to Colorado State University, Fort Collins hosts over 30,000 students annually — and when they leave for summer break, many of those students need a place to store their mattresses, desks, chairs and other items for their dorm rooms. Self storage facilities located close to the university, such as Eastside Self Storage, are the best solution for solving college students’ storage needs.
4. Collectibles and other expensive belongings
Whether you’re collecting coins, comic books, artwork or vintage furniture, one thing is for sure: you need space to store your collection in an environment that keeps items from deteriorating. In other words, storing collectibles in a cold and damp basement or an attic is far from a good idea. A climate-controlled storage unit that keeps your collectibles at constant temperature and humidity levels, regardless of outside weather, is particularly useful for Fort Collins residents — especially during the extremely cold winters.
5. Business storage
Self storage can solve not only individual storage needs but also the extra storage needs associated with business operations. Whether companies need to store files and documents or tools and equipment, the costs and availability of extra office space or commercial warehouses can be an issue. Self storage, on the other hand, is widely available, affordable and versatile — you can rent on a month-to-month basis and easily adjust how much storage space you rent for your activities.
For what other reasons are you using self storage in Fort Collins? Let us know in the comments!
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