Soon we may need to choose a new place to store our RV. The company that currently provides space for our rig has just announced that it’s raising monthly fees. I suppose it’s because demand is up. Way up! We should have seen this coming. With more and more RVs purchased in recent years, more and more folks need a place to keep their rig when they’re not traveling. It’s the “supply and demand principle” in action. We have one month before our current lease expires. So, we have 30 days to choose an RV storage facility.
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Subdivision restrictions
Our small subdivision’s HOA does not allow homeowners to store boats, trailers, or RVs on our property. Our lot size wouldn’t accommodate the RV anyway. I wish things were different. I really wish our RV could be parked in our driveway or backyard. It would make things so much easier: packing, unpacking, maintenance chores, you name it. For all of you who are blessed to have your RV parked on your property, I envy you!
RV storage facility considerations
When searching for an RV storage space, there are several important things to consider. Here are the top considerations for us as we search.
Close to home
- If we can’t store the RV on our property, at least we want it to be stored close by. It’s simply more convenient for us in the event we need to access our rig.
- Close to home also means less fuel expense when we need to access our RV. Packing work camping tools, along with clothing, shoes, food, and supplies can mean several trips from home to the RV storage place and back.
Security
- Obviously, you’ll want to avoid RV storage facilities that are located in high-crime areas. If you’re not sure about the area, ask the storage facility, local authorities, or go online to find out about crime or theft frequency.
- At the very least, our preferred storage place would be completely surrounded by secure fencing. Gate access via personal code is also a plus. Our current facility’s gate “code box” records the name of every renter who enters. Even if someone “borrows” a renter’s entry code, the renter’s name is still recorded. That renter will then be contacted in the event of a theft.
- Recording security cameras also add a layer of protection, especially if the company keeps the recordings for a period of time. In order for recording cameras to be useful, the entire storage lot must also be well lit.
- On-site personnel is a perk, as well. Our current storage business has a person onsite most mornings during the week.
Access
- Another feature we search for when choosing an RV storage place is access. Is the storage business located off a narrow, hilly, and deeply-rutted road? Will we be forced to drive through low-hanging tree branches in order to access the facility? If so, we’ll keep on looking. You might be surprised at some of the places we’ve seen. Getting there and back would require nerves of steel! No thank you.
- Access to the RV storage facility is one thing. Accessing the assigned storage spot can be quite another. Because of the high demand, some RV storage companies offer very narrow sites. If another unit is too close to our own, extending slides (even partially) is not an option. In fact, putting down our solid steps takes up a good amount of space, as well! Finessing our rig into a narrow site is a challenge we’d just as soon avoid.
- Another access consideration is the storage business hours. Some storage places have 24-hour access. We currently have access to our RV between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., and that works fine for us.
Level
It’s important to us that our storage assigned site is fairly level. We like to keep our jacks positioned as low as possible when the RV is in storage.
Price
- There are many factors that determine what you’ll pay for storing your RV. Location, size of rental site, and type of storage will all impact your costs. Generally, a storage facility located away from the city will be less expensive than one closer.
- The size of your rental space will also factor into what you can expect to pay. Usually, the larger the rig, the more you’ll pay. In our current storage facility, two small truck campers share a space that is the exact size that one big motorhome rents nearby.
- Finally, the type of rental space varies in price. A covered parking site will typically cost more than an uncovered one. Before deciding, check out the site you’re considering at different times of the day. In our current storage facility, the roof protects the rigs stored at the end of each row for only a portion of the day. If money is not an issue, you might consider climate-controlled storage space for your RV. Be aware. This option may be quite costly.
What are some other factors you consider when choosing an RV storage facility? Tell us in the comments below.
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##RVT1057
Moved mine from secure property in Fla to be near home in Texas. Three days in new ” secure” facility my catalytic converter cut off. Owner had video but it was a fence climber and we can’t prevent that. ???
No RV storage area is really “secure”, no matter if they are gated, concertina wire on top of fencing, lights, and staffed 24/7. If a thief wants something, they’ll get it. I had an Onan propane generator stolen out of an RV I had while it sat in the “secure” lot. Now, you can’t tell me that getting one of those out of an RV can’t be noticed. And, seems the big thing nowadays is stealing catalytic converters. Fortunately, I now have property I can keep my MH on and feel secure.
I honestly think if I had to pay for storage on my RV, I wouldn’t HAVE an RV. It just seems like such a hassle.
Tommy, I agree, I would not have an RV if I could not store it on my property. On the other hand, these comments tells us how diverse the RV owners are and how differently we all use our RVs.
An important consideration for us is that the storage facility be privately owned & operated with a point of contact who is easy to work with. We live in our RV 6 months every year, 3 in the winter, 3 in the summer. Our permanent home is in the mid-west, but we store the RV in Phoenix. Last summer we called our preferred storage facility about 1 month before the end of our trip to reserve a spot, only to find that they were sold out. We searched the area for openings but only found space in facilities that cost 3 times as much as we were accustomed to. We ended up finding a corporate owned facility halfway between Phoenix and Tuscon that was affordable, so we claimed the space and started paying so it would be there when we needed it. Luckily, our preferred facility had a cancellation & the owner called and offered it to us. So, now we pay for the spot year-round to make sure we have it. The owner agreed to rent our spot when not in use and we split the monthly rent.
One perk we have at our storage facility is a dump station. Nice to know that’s there if we need it after returning from a trip
Over the years, I have used two locations that I basically stumbled on to. One was a KOA that had long term storage on some sites not being used for camping. The other was at a an off-airport parking facility that had a dedicated area for RVs. Neither were cheap but there was plenty of room and security which I appreciated.
We have a new storage plan with a guy who has done maintenance on our RV. It is a gated lot and there is always activity there because the owner is moving RVs in and out for service. Yes, we have had our RV broken into in other facilities, but we might have found a better solution now.
The assumption of the author is that you will have a choice when it comes to places to park your RV. That is rarely the case any more with no vacancy at most places due to the increase in the number of new RV owners, and the additional restrictions some communities are placing on where, or even if, you can park an RV at your home.
+1
We go camping mainly in the same locations all the time. It made sense to get storage near those places rather than close to home- cutting down fuel costs plus wear/tear.- It’s still only about 40 minutes from our house. The price per month continues to go up and there’s anothe fancier place under construction less than a mile away from ours but I’ll bet the rent will continue to rise disproportionately. BTW, we have 2 covered spots, each at $220.00/month in the ca. bay area.
I was in a storage park with security living on site, gated with cameras. My rv and others were broken into anyway. I am in Florida and the bargain is to store at an rv park that offers storage in the less populated areas for around $60-90 per month. Less vandalism and honest campers around most of the time.
We moved storage areas from a large mostly commercial vehicle storage to a place that was only RVs and boats. The commercial place raised rates from $100 to $140 to $250 a month. We got lucky with the new storage that is $105 a month and it’s more secure3 miles away compared to the old storage being 2 miles from home.
The financials make sense for the new place, no question. Best decision to save money and get a better place to store the camper. We are in GA.
My storage is a U-Haul location. It’s covered, fully paved, uses access cards, has cameras, and cats roam the area. (No mice!)
They’ve also consistently raised prices. $10 every year in the past three years I’ve been there. I’m now paying over $1200 per year. I wish i could find equal for cheaper, but i think until the RV boom dies down, we’re stuck.
I was going to visit my daughter in SoCal. They wanted $330 for 2 months. You had to pay for 2 mo, even though I only needed one… They were all full anyway.
Rent was raised recently at our storage facility so I too decided to look around. I found a facility nearby with the same amenities as our current one for about $25 less per month. I cancelled the current one and moved over to the new one and found the new slip was more narrow that I’d been use to. So narrow that when I opened my entry door it hit my slip mates awning cover. I went back to my old slip, knowing that over a few months I’d incur more costs in damage than I saved.
We live in the Bellevue, WA area and have been with the same storage facility for about 10 years. The cost to store our rig has skyrocketed. I pay by the year and have been able to avoid a lot of their increases that way. Our space now goes for a $100 a month more then what we pay and I don’t consider what we pay cheap. A few years ago before the demand was so great we looked at moving to another storage facility. We didn’t move. The places we looked at either weren’t secure, not well kept, access was limited and/or the space available was too tight or difficult to get our rig in and out of.
When we were moving to FL we put our TT in a local high security storage facility near the park we bought in. It was $98+tax/month but it was secure with a 10’ fence, security cameras watching everything. They even had a camera inside each storage unit, I thought the price was high when we originally rented it, but later appreciated it.
In my area the right storage is one that has room. Not many options and most are full.