When putting together a home sweet home, oftentimes it’s not the amount of space you have, but how you use your space that matters.
That’s why the newest housing trend, micro-condos, is becoming more and more popular in Toronto and other Canadian cities.
Micro-condos are units that are typically smaller than 400 square feet. Sounds tiny, right? Well, they’re increasingly becoming an attractive option for a wide array of homebuyers, especially in this time of soaring housing prices.
Who’s buying micro-condos?
Young professionals, students, first-time buyers, and even people in their 40s, 50s, and 60s looking to dramatically downsize their living arrangements are realizing the benefits of inhabiting these uniquely designed modern spaces.
Micro-condos are often built downtown, which lets owners and renters easily get around the city by walking or via public transit.
They also force people to get organized. Why? Because living in a cluttered micro-condo simply doesn’t work.
That’s where expertly designed organization solutions like custom cabinetry, wall beds, and closet organizers can help maximize the limited space you have available.
Use your small space efficiently with custom cabinetry
Significantly downsizing your number of possessions is essential when you decide to try micro-condo living. A great way to manage the belongings you do keep is by installing custom cabinetry.
Custom cabinetry can be installed in your living room/sleeping area or kitchen. When installed by professionals, custom cabinetry will fit your cozy space perfectly, allow you to stay organized, and add beauty to your mini-condo’s appearance.
Make the most of your closet space with a closet organizer
Closet space in a mini-condo is at a premium, so why not make the most of yours? A closet organizer is the best option for maximizing your closet’s organizational potential.
By designing it to your space’s exact specifications, our experts can provide you with a closet organization solution that will help keep your micro-condo clutter-free.
Consider your wall bed options
Wall beds are tailor-made for small condos because they fold up into your wall when not in use, usually allowing for the use of other furniture.
While micro-condos typically come with a wall bed installed, you might not be satisfied with the comfort level you’re getting out of it.
Or perhaps you have guests who stay overnight regularly enough to justify adding another wall bed to your micro-condo, if space allows. Organized Interiors can help.
Micro-condos might be small, but they can still provide the same functionality as a larger living space and be just as organized with the right customized designs.
If you’re a micro-condo dweller or planning a move to one, book a free in-home consultation to help you get the most of your small space.
Storage units can be useful if they are used for short periods of time.
When major events occur in your life like moving between homes, getting married or divorced, or downsizing, renting a storage unit can seem like a convenient option.
Unfortunately, for many people a storage unit becomes a place to store their excess belongings for longer than they should.
Before long, a storage unit can become a 5′ x 10′ room of neglect and a bottomless pit of expense.
Quite often, months and years go by before people realize that they’ve spent thousands of dollars on storing their clutter.
1 out of every 10 households rents a storage unit
According to the Self Storage Association in the US, one out of every 10 households rents a storage unit from more than 51,000 storage facilities across the country.
By comparison, Starbucks now has 11,100 stores in the US. Self storage is a huge industry that pulls in over $154 billion dollars a year.
In Canada, it is estimated that there are over 3,000 storage facilities and business is booming. North Americans are living well beyond their means and Canadian household debt is at an all-time high.
We’re purchasing so many things now that we don’t know where to put it all!
Consider these incredible research findings:
According to a Boston College sociologist, the average US consumer purchased one new piece of clothing every five-and-a-half days.
A 2006 study by UCLA discovered that middle-class families in Los Angeles were “battling a nearly universal overaccumulation of goods” and that “the home goods storage crisis has reached almost epic proportions.”
By the mid-2000s, the average size of the Canadian home peaked at 2,300 square feet. In the 1960s, homes were around 1,200 square feet. We have more storage space than ever before but it’s still not enough.
Storage units aren’t the answer. There are countless stories of people coming to this realization after spending thousands of dollars. Hopefully the rest of this article will convince you why storage units are a bad idea.
1. Storage units are expensive
The price of self storage units in downtown Toronto are not cheap. You’ll pay less in Ajax or Brampton by up to $50.
Listed below is some sample pricing for small and medium storage units in Toronto:
Small storage unit (5′ x 5′)
25 square feet of space
enough to store some small items, boxes and luggage
$139/4 weeks
Medium storage unit (5′ x 10′)
50 square feet of storage space
most popular size
enough to store the contents of a bachelor apartment
$233/4 weeks
A medium storage unit can cost $3,029 each year. In five years that cost balloons to $15,145. Does it make sense to spend that much money on storing your excess clutter?
2. Your storage unit is full of junk
It’s hard to part with your things. They might be family items with sentimental value. Perhaps you collect rare books, baseball cards, musical instruments, or antique furniture.
Be honest with yourself. How much of the stuff that you collect is really junk? A lot of the items in storage lockers have little to no value.
If you’ve ever watched an episode of Storage Wars, then you’ll know that most of the storage units out there are full of junk.
It costs a lot of money to store junk. If you haven’t used something in your home for several years, you probably don’t need it. Just throw it out.
3. Hidden costs and services
There are hidden costs and services associated with renting a storage locker that can add up quickly.
Many self storage companies in Toronto charge a setup fee and require a mandatory monthly insurance premium.
A 5′ x ’10 storage unit might start out at $199/4 weeks. Factor in some of these additional costs and services:
$7.50 for mandatory insurance
$20 for secure locks (extra security and protection)
$20 premium storage (units are closer to access points in storage facility)
All of a sudden you could be paying $246.50/4 weeks or an additional $2,470 each year!
4. It’s smarter to invest in home storage and organization
If you own a home or condo, it makes more sense to invest in home storage and organization instead of self storage.
People rent storage lockers because they think there isn’t enough space in their homes. There is a lot of underutilized storage space in your home.
Sometimes it just takes a design expert to help you find it.
Instead of wasting money on a storage locker, invest in a custom closet or custom cabinetry. It might cost the same as renting a storage unit for a year or two, but it will increase the value of your home.
Realtors believe that a walk-in closet can help a condo stand out from other homes on the market when it comes time to sell.
5. Theft and damage
A lot of self storage facilities don’t have onsite security guards. Depending on the construction of the storage locker, it is possible to break into a storage unit.
If a storage unit doesn’t have climate control the contents of your unit could be at risk. Furniture and electronics that are exposed to extreme heat or cold can become damaged over time. Mould and water damage can also occur.
Just do a Google search for “water damage storage unit”. Sometimes insurance claims are denied if you don’t have proper coverage.
6. Storage units are a bad investment
People often store furniture or electronics in storage lockers because they cost a lot of money when they were first purchased. Throwing them out feels wasteful. Maybe they will increase in value when they are older.
Why would you sell a piece of furniture on Craigslist for $50 when you originally paid over $1,000 for it? You could put it in storage for 10 years and give it to your kids when they move out.
The only problem with that logic is that your storage costs after 10 years could be more than $20,000! That’s way more than the original value of the furniture. And that doesn’t make any sense. Sell these items on Craigslist, Kijiji, or give them away.
7. You can donate your furniture to someone who needs it
We often store things for years and never use them. As time goes by we get fed up storing things like furniture and eventually throw them out or give them away. Why wait?
Help a family transitioning out of homelessness or displacement and donate your furniture to an organization like Furniture Bank. You’ll be doing some good and will even get a tax receipt.
8. Environmental footprint
According to the the Self Storage Association, the US has over 2.3 billion square feet of self storage space. Consider the climate control and lighting costs for all of that storage space.
If you care about the environment, you have to wonder why we are spending so much energy to house so much junk.
9. It is cheaper to declutter
Marie Kondo’s best-selling book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up can be purchased for $15 at Indigo.
If you read it and follow her advice it could save you thousands of dollars in storage fees.
10. Self storage companies want you to forget about your stuff
When it comes to clutter, people are lazy. Very few people really enjoy sorting through old clothes, toys, magazines, and half-broken household items.
Derek Naylor, president of Storage Marketing Solutions says “human laziness has always been a big friend of self storage operators.” It’s easier for people to throw everything into boxes, put it into storage and deal with it later.
Nobody wants to spend all weekend going through a storage locker and moving everything out. They would rather make their monthly storage payments and not deal with their clutter.
Storage units are a bad idea
The next time you declutter and purge, make a trip to the dump instead of a storage unit. Invest the money in better home storage and organization solutions. They will pay for themselves in the long-term.
Contact us if you’d like to learn more about how we can help you improve the organization and storage in your home.
Custom storage solutions allow you to maximize wall space and create a functional entertaining area in your home.
Here are five ways to maximize wall space with an entertainment unit in a small room.
1. Add horizontal storage
Every living room needs storage space to prevent clutter and help you stay organized. Instead of relying on multiple small furniture pieces for storage, take advantage of the length of a wall with one long, integrated storage solution.
A counter height and depth console is the right height for a flat screen TV and can be custom outfitted with closed and open storage.
Mix cupboards, drawers and shelves based on your entertainment storage needs.
2. Install a floor-to-ceiling unit
Take advantage of vertical space by making your entertainment unit as tall as possible.
Keep functional items for entertaining within reach, use open shelves for displaying and to store game systems, electronics, board games, etcetera behind closed doors.
3. Hide a bed
Horizontal or vertical storage can be custom outfitted with a wall bed for overnight guests. Invisible when tucked away, a fold-out bed can be incorporated with plenty of storage built in around it.
4. Incorporate a bar
If your living room is not large enough for a home bar, no problem! You can add a mini-bar to your entertainment unit that allows you to easily mix drinks and serve guests without even leaving the room.
Be sure to include under-mount cabinet lighting to enhance the bar’s functionality and ambience.
5. Get cozy with a fireplace
An entertainment unit does more than just house your TV and store your DVDs and Blu-ray discs.
It also allows you to enjoy cozy features, such as a gas or electric fireplace, without requiring additional room. Warm up on a chilly night with a fireplace installed beneath the TV.
If you’re considering adding an entertainment unit to your home, start by getting a free in-home design consultation from Organized Interiors today.
The newest trend, the Tiny House Movement, is becoming more and more popular.
Whether it’s a custom trailer, mobile home, small cottage or micro-condo, tiny homes are typically smaller than 500 square feet. Think you can live in such a small space?
Well, many young professionals, students and first-time buyers are jumping at the chance to live in these smaller spaces.
Advantage of micro-living
While an efficient, small structure in the great outdoors is one aspect of the Tiny House Movement, micro-condos are an excellent option in cities like Toronto.
These units can usually be found in larger condo developments, mostly downtown. One advantage for owners and renters is the access to the best of city living, usually within walking distance.
Micro-condos offer a great option to live efficiently in a great location for less. They also force people to get organized.
Get organized
So, as an owner of a micro-condo, how do you maximize your space and make it livable? Get organized! Along with downsizing and getting rid of stuff you no longer need, you should consider installing custom cabinetry.
Custom cabinets are designed to fit in perfectly with your unique home, helping you to eliminate clutter and use your space wisely. Putting your stuff behind closed doors eliminates visual chaos and allows you to relax in your tiny environment.
Big sleep comfort in a small space
Customized options also allow you to choose smart solutions like wall beds so you can make the most of your space.
Wall beds are great solutions for smaller condos because when they’re not in use, they fold up into a surrounding cabinet on the wall.
It can become your whole bedroom or you can use a wall bed to create a guest room.
Don’t sacrifice style for function
Micro-condos might be small, but they can still provide the same functionality as a larger home and be just as organized with the right customized designs.
If you’re in the market for one of these tinier units, don’t forget to book a free in-home design consultation with Organized Interiors to make the most of your small space.
If you’re thinking about hiring a designer to build a custom cabinet or custom closet in your home, that’s great!
Hiring a designer allows you to meet specific needs and tailor cabinetry to your exact style.
Before you go ahead and hire a designer, however, there are a few things you’ll want to consider first.
1. Cabinet style
Do you like the contemporary style or traditional? Dark finishes or warm, light colours? Putting some thought into what style you like best will help a designer build cabinets that you love.
It’s also a good idea to consider your home’s current style so you can ensure that the new cabinets don’t clash with existing decor and furniture.
2. Storage needs
What exactly are you planning to store in your new cabinets or closet? Kitchenware, office supplies or clothes?
Knowing how you plan to use your custom cabinets will help a designer tailor the project to your needs.
3. Storage space
How much storage space will you be needing? If you already know what items will be placed in the cabinets or closets, you should have a good idea of how large your custom storage solutions need to be.
You might also consider having custom cabinets made larger, to create space for additional items you buy in the future.
4. What’s wrong with your current storage solution?
Is your current closet too small, or does it not have enough shelf space? Pinpointing the problem(s) with your current storage solution will help a designer come up with a solution.
5. Big picture
Are you trying to get more organized, maximize your living space or improve your home’s style?
Know what your main objective is before you take on a project like this, and share this information with your designer!
Talk to a designer
Once you’ve considered these 5 things then talk to a designer. Get them to come to your home and see your space.
A designer can help you save a lot of time and create a custom storage solution that is perfect for your needs.
