Storage Between Move-Out and Move-In: How It Actually Works

Lease ends the 31st, new place is ready the 5th. It happens constantly. The good news is the gap is a solved problem, and it is cheaper than a hotel plus a rushed decision.

Two ways to bridge the gap

For a gap of one or two nights, the simplest option is often keeping the load on the truck overnight and delivering the next morning. For anything longer, your things go into a storage unit, and you pay for the move in and the move out separately.

Picking a size

• 5x5: a closet worth. Boxes, seasonal items, a bike.
• 5x10: a studio or a single bedroom.
• 10x10: a one bedroom or a small two bedroom.
• 10x15: a full two bedroom.
• 10x20: a three bedroom house, roughly a full truck.

Pack the unit like you will need something

1. 1Leave a walkway down the middle. You will need something before the gap is over, guaranteed.
2. 2Heavy and rarely needed at the back, seasonal and likely needed near the door.
3. 3Everything up off the concrete on pallets or a layer of cardboard.
4. 4Uniform box sizes stack much better and much taller.
5. 5Cover upholstered furniture with breathable covers, not plastic sheeting, which traps moisture.
6. 6Keep an inventory list on your phone, and photograph the unit once it is loaded.

What it costs

In Southern California, expect roughly $80 to $150 a month for a 5x10 and $180 to $300 for a 10x20, with climate control at the higher end. Many facilities run a first-month promotion, which is worth asking about when your gap is short. Then budget for two moving appointments instead of one, because the crew is loading and unloading twice.

One thing to check

Confirm the facility's access hours and whether they allow a full-size moving truck at the loading bay. A unit you cannot reach with a 26-footer turns a two-hour job into a four-hour one.