Student Storage

Anyone who has been to college will remember how lacking student storage was. In most cases dorm students were required to pack up their belongings after each year and put them in the almost non-existent dorm storage, if they were staying in the same dorm, or have them picked up and moved back home until the following fall if they were changing dorms or moving off-campus.

Well, thanks to storage companies, student storage can be relatively painless. Storage companies now offer students the opportunity to pack their belongings at their leisure by delivering boxes, labels, tape, bubble wrap, tubes and markers at least a week in advance, and will pick up items from their residences for safe storage during breaks, semesters abroad and leave of absences. Some will even pick up items at off-campus housing. Student possessions are stored for the summer, a semester, or for however long it is necessary and then delivered to its requested destination. Storage items are not limited to things that will fit in boxes. Beds, desks, bikes, skis, snowboards, etc., can all be stored until they are needed.

Students can even send items from home to certain storage companies before school opens and the items will be held in storage until the start of the semester. Most schools will not hold items for students while school is not in session. This is a great way for students to make sure they have everything they need right from the beginning of the semester. Parents will no longer be required to make lengthy, expensive trips to pack up college students and bring all of their belongings to and from school for just a few months.

Prices will definite vary from state to state/town to town, but some rates start as low as $20 to $25 for a book box (12x12x16) and go up to approximately $50 to $55 for a large box (18x18x24), or students can purchase packages which include an assortment of boxes to designed to house a variety of items. A small package is about $100, a medium package about $200 and a large about $300. Despite package rates, if all boxes are not utilized, students can typically recoup their money, or apply the difference to any items which will not fit in boxes. Larger items range in rates from $5 to $150. Many companies include insurance with their packages, with additional insurance being available for purchase, if necessary.

Note: Be aware that each storage company may have certain requirements for how to package/box specific items, or items they may refuse to store for insurance purposes. Be sure to ask about any items that may be excluded, in advance.

The student storage industry has evolved. Students can now rest assured that their items will be stored properly until they return to their dorms or off-campus housing, and parents are now free from having to perform the twice yearly ritual of packing up and unloading their children.