Don't trust leaving your personal belongings in an old rusty storage locker at your condo or rental property. Find self-storage solutions that are safe and secure.
Do you own a multi-housing unit such as a condo? Do you rent out part or all of property as a long or short-term rental? If you are storing your personal belongings at your property, you may want to consider looking for an off-site safe and secure self storage facility.
Not only are your items susceptible to damage or theft, there are other complications that may arise from storing your items at your condo or rental property.
Here's why:
Understanding limited and common property rules
According to the BC Government's Strata Property Act, when you own a unit in a multi-family family building such as a condo, areas such as parking and storage are designated on a residential strata plan in two ways:
- As limited common property (LCP), where the strata owner is not entitled to the exclusive use of the LCP parking or storage area but has exclusive right to use it
- As common property, where the storage and parking areas are owned by those in the strata corporation in proportion to their respective unit entitlements
What common property means for personal belongings in storage
Well, it could mean that you are not be insured if anything from your limited or common property storage locker or area is stolen or damaged, as it is a shared responsibility between the owner and strata for insuring areas of the condo.
Often a building's insurance policy only covers the common areas, such as the lobby, elevators, and gym, but does not cover an owner's personal belongings. You could lose out if you do not have your own personal contents' insurance policy.
In addition, public storage in common-area storage facilities, as found in the basements or garages of older apartments and condos, is more susceptible to theft.
Rental owners should take precautions
Besides the threat from theft and damage to your property, storage can help declutter your space if you plan to rent out your property to either tenants or vacationers. First, apply these safeguards:
- Empty all cupboards and drawers
- Hide personal effects such as photos
- Remove expensive and valuable heirlooms, furniture pieces, art and antiques
How renting indoor storage can help
Condo and/or rental property owners looking to put away their personal property in a safe and secure facility should look for a reliable self-storage provider that offers long-term, or in the case of a vacation rental, short-term storage facilities. For those storing any precious art or antiques, look for a climate-controlled or a heated storage space to avoid elemental damage.
Find out how the growth of new multi-housing developments has increased the demand for storage units in Kelowna by reading our latest press release.
Space Centre Storage offers a safe and secure Kelowna self-storage facility with a variety of sized units as well as heated and climate controlled storage spaces. We not only offer affordable local storage for Kelowna property owners with personal items, but our new 157-unit outdoor RV and boat storage lot can help those who need to store extra vehicles, recreational vehicles as well as boats and trailers.