Rental Industry News Today

Residents and business owners in the Boston suburb of Waltham, Ma who want to do business with a public self storage facility that is clean, secure, and staffed by knowledgeable professionals are invited to visit Extra Space Self Storage.

Conveniently located just off Interstate 95 at 195 Bear Hill Road, this imposing structure offers indoor heated and climate controlled storage units in a variety of sizes to fit your storage needs.

Extra Space is customer focused, a dynamic, growing company, and currently the second largest self storage provider in the USA. One visit to this site and you’ll see why.

Among the amenities:
1.    Multiple video cameras capturing activity throughout the property
2.    Electronic coded gate access for restricted secure entry
3.    Climate-controlled units to protect from humidity and temperature extremes
4.    Convenient freeway access
5.    Sturdy moving carts let you easily move heavy and bulky items
6.    Lifts available for hassle-free upper-floor access
7.    Loading dock for smooth loading and unloading
8.    Covered loading bay keeps you protected from the elements
9.    RV Storage - Recreational vehicle spaces.

Call or stop by this self storage fortress and see for yourself what they have to offer. Their staff will be happy to give you a tour and answer your questions. Seeing is believing.

According to a story released by The Auburn Reporter on August 27th, 2012, King County, Washington fire investigators have made an arrest in connection with the July 11th arson fire which destroyed much of a self storage facility in Auburn, Wa.

Mike Aguilar was arrested and charged with arson in the second degree, a class B felony. A charge of arson in the second degree means the suspect is accused of knowingly and maliciously causing a fire or explosion which results in damage to a structure. Aguilar faces a term of 10 years in prison, a $20,000 fine, or both if found guilty.

The four-alarm fire required the attention of over 60 firefighters from several departments to control and is estimated to have caused nearly a million dollars in damage to the building and contents. The fire raged for hours before being extinguished.

The story serves as a graphic reminder of the importance of adequate renters insurance for the possessions stored in a self storage rental facility. The fire consumed the contents of nearly two thirds of the units comprising the business, and most of the contents of the affected self storage units were destroyed. Any items stored in the damaged units were likely a complete uncompensated loss if they were not covered by adequate insurance.

Many self storage facilities offer their customers renters insurance as an additional charge to help protect them from loss in the event of an unexpected occurrence like fire, theft, or weather damage. It’s a safe bet that those who had renter’s insurance for items which were consumed in the fire are very glad they did.

On a warm summer day it’s nice to be able to open the windows and let some fresh air flow through your residence.  From time to time living quarters can feel a bit stuffy and allowing some outdoor air to flow into your space usually makes you feel better.

Getting Organized Makes You Feel Positive and Productive

Another warm weather activity that makes you feel positive is cleaning out some crowded and cluttered areas of the home or apartment and getting organized. The Spring and Summer months provide a timely opportunity to do this too, as you don’t have to be concerned with cold air blasting inside as you move things in and out of the house or garage. The yard, patio, or a large interior room make a great staging area as you rearrange items which just don’t seem to be in the right place.

As possessions are accumulated after you move into a residence, many times you just can’t seem to find the right spot to store an item, but you don’t want to take it out to the curb for the garbage truck, and you really don’t want to offer it for sale. Public self storage units for rent are a great place to safely and securely harbor these items. Seasonal items, furniture, musical instruments and old personal records are examples of items which can be stored off site in order to free up extra space in your dwelling. In addition if you live in geographic region that gets warm and humid in the summer months, self storage facilities lease air cooled and climate controlled storage units.

That Pesky Pile of Wires and Electronic Junk

Another type of item often confronting the beginning organizer is the accumulation of electronics like computers, monitors, televisions, and game consoles which you weren’t quite ready to abandon until you were sure their replacements worked as advertised. These discard piles have the potential to take on a life of their own  and can seem to grow exponentially as the days of the calendar fly by. There’s even a term for this electronic junk now. It’s call electronic waste, or E-waste.

You won’t want to store these old items and you won’t be using them anymore. They’re also so outdated that donating them is unfeasible since nobody will take them. You can’t set them out on the curb because the garbage crew won’t pick them up either. What to do? Recycle them!

E-waste Recycling Collection Points To The Rescue

The demand for properly disposing of unwanted, outdated, or just plain broken electronic equipment in a manner that is environmentally safe has led to the development of recycling collection locations that accept e-waste. Progressive communities have special centers or businesses where unwanted electronics and e-waste can be taken for proper disposal. Many of these services are offered free of charge or for a very nominal fee.

For example, in the State of California, an organization called Greenspot Dropoff has teamed up with a number of self storage businesses to create e-waste recycling collection points. One of the largest self storage companies in the state, Extra Space Self Storage, is going all-in and is making every one of their self storage facilities in California an e-waste collection point. So, if you have an Extra Space location in your community, you have a convenient place to take your e-waste clutter for proper disposal. Municipalities like Sacramento, Compton, Carson, Irvine, Long Beach, San Leandro, El Cajon, Lake Elsinore, Emeryville and Cerritos are among many that offer e-waste recycling drop off at the local Extra Space Self Storage locations.

Searching online for an e-waste recycling center in your environs is a good way to learn about and find electronics recycling centers and how they can be of benefit to everyone. Another idea is to call your local government or landfill operator to inquire about to proper disposal of unwanted computers and electronic waste.

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Going Green and recycling are integral parts of an ongoing effort to raise awareness of what you can do to help keep your environment healthy and sustainable. If you are getting organized and need to rent a self storage unit in Long Beach, CA you can also recycle your e-waste instead of throwing it away.

An important aspect of protecting the environment is utilizing electronics recycling and proper e-waste disposal, especially computer recycling, according to the EPA. Choosing to recycle electronics versus setting them on the curb on garbage day or throwing them into a dumpster is going Green in a big way.

One of the worst options for disposing of electronics is sending them to a landfill. Not only is this practice wasteful, it is also extremely harmful as toxins and chemicals contaminate the earth and water supply as, over time, they leach out of the electronic waste. 

Environmentally friendly alternatives to sending outdated or unusable electronic equipment to the landfill are becoming better known. For example, an organization known as Greenspot Dropoff now makes it easier to find a convenient location to take your unwanted computer, tv and related electronics for safe disposal. Best of all, the service is free.

Greenspot Dropoff was founded in California in 2009 to promote as well as provide a responsible way to dispose of e-waste. Currently most Greenspot Dropoff locations are in California and Texas. Greenspot’s goal is to build out and establish electronics recycling drop off locations within 10 miles of most population centers in the USA. 

So what can you recycle at Greenspot Dropoff? With the exception of appliances, if you can plug it in and it has a circuit board, they will accept it: televisions, fax machines, oscilloscopes, computer monitors, optical drives, PC boards, DVD players, laptops, VCRs, keyboards, printers, radios, computer mice, and stereo components are all eligible. They’ll also take cables and cords.  

On March 9th of 2012, the e-waste recycling program received a significant boost when Greenspot Dropoff announced an alliance with Extra Space self storage facilities including 48 of their locations in California. Extra Space Self Storage is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, and is the second largest self storage provider in the United States.

Now businesses and individuals in cities like Long Beach, California can take advantage of e-waste recycling at self storage unit rental providers and the community will benefit not only environmentally, but financially as well. Extra Space and Greenspot have pledged to donate one dollar to schools and charitable organizations for each CRT monitor, television, computer, flat screen and laptop brought to any participating Extra Space location for recycling.

Regardless of whether you live in the areas currently served by Greenspot Dropoff and their partners like Extra Space, it will benefit you and future generations to recycle your e-waste at a facility or drop off that will dispose of it properly. An online search usually will provide locations in your area. Your earth will love you for it.

Rent It Today markets and promotes the services of facilities offering self storage Units in Cincinnati, OH and throughout the United States. This segment of the rental world represents a significant part of the rental industry and is a good fit for both Rent It Today and our storage rental business partners.

Recently Rent It Today was excited to add to our growing cadre of rental companies one of the premiere self storage companies in the country, Extra Space Storage. Extra Space Storage is the second largest self storage operator in the USA and has been the subject of numerous financial business articles in the last month as its stock price climbs and it receives accolades from many market analysts for its business model.

Rent It Today is based in Greater Cincinnati, which is privileged to have six Extra Space Storage facilities which have over 4000 storage units in Cincinnati, OH meeting the storage rental needs of our metropolitan area. The “West Side” location at 5151 Glencrossing Way in the Western Hills / Delhi Township area is within a short drive of the residence of rental industry news writer, Bob Schrichte, so he decided to get a firsthand look at what Extra Space is doing to warrant the praises of the business media, as well as to get an ‘on the ground’ feel for the workings of the self storage business.

The following is his report:

When I initially called John Cox, who manages the Extra Space Glencrossing Way location, he was very receptive to the idea of an interview and tour of his Cincinnati self storage facility and quickly took the initiative to get corporate approval to proceed. Corporate approval was required in keeping with Extra Space’s focus on security for their facilities and customers.

Upon arriving at the location, I couldn’t help but notice the large sign that read “New Years Resolution Declutter and Store Here”. I was initially impressed with both its size and the cleanliness of the grounds. There are over 700 storage units in the facility and the grounds around the storage units that I could see from the entrance and surrounding the office were devoid of any debris. Not even a cigarette butt was visible.

The customer reception counter and office areas were well lit and also very clean. An area devoted to packing and moving supplies including boxes and bubble wrap occupied about half of the waiting area.

I was greeted by the receptionist promptly and in a very friendly manner. She paged John the manager, who invited me into his office. During our interview John shared with me that he had been in the self storage business for many years and was a senior trainer for Extra Space. I asked him about the New Years Resolution sign and he talked about the increase in storage unit rentals following the New Years celebration resulting from ‘getting organized’ being a top resolution for people throughout the country.

After our introduction, John took me on a tour of the facility and showed me several of their indoor storage units, which are accessed from an indoor hallway within a building. This is as opposed to a drive up storage unit, which is accessed from an outdoor locale.
I would highly recommend anyone considering renting a storage unit to visit the facility to actually see the sizes that are available as well as the difference between indoor access versus outdoor access storage spaces.  Experienced managers like John are also happy to share with you tips about getting organized, storage pointers or answer any questions you have.

John pointed out the numerous video cameras in use on the site to record any activity which takes place on the grounds, and that each storage unit has its own intrusion alarm. The interior of the inside storage unit buildings was as clean and fastidious as the outside. When I commented to John on how clean the entire facility was, he explained that there is both a practical as well as esthetic purpose to the focus on maintaining a spotless environment. Not only does is it visually appealing, it also discourages any intrusion by animals. As insurance, the storage unit buildings and grounds are periodically examined by exterminators for signs of any furry intruders.

Overall, I was left with a very favorable impression of the Extra Space Glenway Crossing location and its staff. I would not hesitate to recommend it to anyone seeking safe, secure storage of their possessions in a clean environment run by true professionals. Seeing truly is believing.

Listening to the feedback from Bob following his tour of the storage facility was great. He brought back a wealth of insight about the storage industry and local self storage market in the Cincinnati, Ohio area. This led to a variety of recently published articles about self storage and using Cincinnati storage units to get organized.

Have you ever rented a self storage unit to help with getting organized?

Related Cincinnati OH Self Storage Articles:

• Rent Self Storage Units and Eliminate the Clutter
• Customer Spotlight: Self Storage Cincinnati OH
• Declutter with Self Storage Unit Rentals in Cincinnati OH
• Reclaim Your Junk Room with Cincinnati Storage Units

by Matt Stephenson