Senior Storage for Residents of Senior Living Communities
The best plan is to require no additional senior storage when moving to a senior living community. Most facilities will have minimal if no storage available. Thus, families often much choose between paying for additional offsite storage or keeping items with a family member.
Always declutter and downsize before moving and even better if the process is done way before making the decision to move to senior living.
Types of Senior Storage
Depending on the senior living community there may be storage onsite that is available for residents to utilize or off site or with a family member will be the best options.
Onsite Storage
Onsite storage is rare for senior living residential communities.
The most common on-site storage option will be the closet of the unit that the senior has rented. Depending on the layout of the unit, townhouse, or home there may be no closet storage space or there may be multiple closets that can be used for storing items. The amount of physical space will be limited for storing clothes and items that can fit inside typical Rubbermaid storage bins. Do not expect to have enough space to store an item like an extra chair or other furniture within the unit itself. A few boxes and Rubbermaid bins with special item or documents is the most you should expect to store in the residential unit.
Some facilities may have an onsite storage area that can be rented similar to a typical storage service. Also facilities that are in towers or have lower-level basement areas may have areas for belongings to be stored for short or long-term durations at additional fees. These are not common in senior living communities. However, they do exist so feel free to ask about what if any onsite storage is available.
Offsite Storage
Off-site storage units for seniors is often done at storage unit companies. I always recommend selecting a storage facility that is in close proximity to the location of the senior living community. While it can be enticing to select a location close to the former home. Therefore, to make packing up and storing go faster, it is always best to have the items moved to a location close to the senior. This makes going to the storage unit to retrieve items and go through boxes of documents or special items much easier.
Ask the storage unit facility for senior discounts. Another option to inquire about is if there are short-term rental packages or discounts. If you know that you will have the time to find long-term homes for the rest of the stored items and time to process the items if moving to senior living in a rush.
Avoid at all costs moving an entire home into a storage unit and then paying monthly fees for many years. Ultimately, many families choose to get a storage unit for their loved ones. As a result, they pay the bill year after year. When no one wants to deal with going through the items that were quickly boxed up. They sit collecting dust becoming less and less useable. This is something that will need to be dealt with at some point. When assisting an elderly family member, the best thing you can do is deal with the storage unit early. Consequently, it helps save their money for other important items down the line.
Storing Items with Friends and Family
Using a basement or storage shed may work for storing some items. If the amount of belongings is limited consider a friend or family member that has space in a garage or basement. This is an excellent way to save costs of storing the goods and keeping them in good hands. One of the biggest difficulties many seniors have is the downsizing process. Getting rid of special things accumulated over a lifetime is hard, which why storage is so often sought. Leaving special items with a family member brings comfort.
Declutter and Downsize before Moving to Senior Living
Declutter for seniors is best done early and often. When assisting a senior loved one planning to move to senior living start earlier than later.. Finding homes for extra furniture that will not be needed is a good place to start. Grandchildren or other younger family members may use that extra couch or recliner chair that will not make the move.
Create a plan for valuables and family heirlooms. Have an estate sale to sell items and place the money in savings for future needs or distribute the items. Create a clear plan early for expensive items. Nothing is worse than creating a disagreement or quarrel amongst family members or stuff when the focus is the loved one getting to a new home.
There are so many things to be addressed during the transition from a personal home to a senior living community. The last thing you want to be worried about is packing up the 3rd set of plates and bowls and carting them to storage. Things that are not regularly used, but still in good working order get donated.