New York City is famous for lots of things—the Empire State Building, Broadway musicals, pizza, and much more—but it’s also become famous for its expensive rent. Apartment rents in Queens have soared in recent years, preventing many from getting the breathing space that they need.
Thankfully, there are options for small apartment storage. Check out Safeguard Self Storage’s tips on how to maximize your living space and see how our Richmond Hill storage units can help you with whatever you need to store.
Use a Creative Roommate Arrangement
It’s common knowledge (and common sense) that you can save money by living with a roommate. In most cases, this means sharing a two-bedroom apartment with one roommate or sharing a three-bedroom apartment with two roommates. That way, you have one bedroom per person.
However, that’s not the ideal setup if you want to maximize your space. Combine a standard roommate situation with some creative thinking by splitting a three-bedroom apartment with two people. That way, you can both have a bedroom and a third for additional space—a nice luxury in Queens. You can use that additional room for an entertainment room, storage, a makeshift music studio, a home office, or more! And if you need some extra money, you can always welcome a third roommate into your apartment.
Best of all, this type of arrangement isn’t much more expensive than splitting a two-bedroom apartment, and the additional bedroom can be a game-changer for those who need more space.
Try the New York City Affordable Housing Lottery
Most apartments are priced according to simple supply and demand. Queens’ small geographic footprint limits the supply of apartments, and the sheer amount of people living in the city means a high demand for housing. The result is rents that are among the highest in the country. The significant financial resources needed to upgrade your space, as well as the limitations of apartment or condo living (as opposed to home ownership), make it difficult to expand your living area via traditional means.
However, there is a solution that you may be able to take advantage of: the New York City affordable housing lottery. Run by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development and the Housing Development Corporation, the program provides artificially depressed rents for both new and older housing at below-market rates—letting you maximize your living space at minimal cost.
How Can I Apply for a Lottery Unit?
The easiest way to apply for a lottery unit is through the New York City Housing Connect online portal. You can search for units and apply for them from the comfort of your own couch. The housing list is sortable by borough, application deadline date, and your own application status.
Each application will feature a table with available units and income requirements and additional details, such as the status of heating and cooling or electricity. Here’s an example table:
The most important requirements you’ll want to consider are your household size and annual household income. Represented as a percentage of Area Median Income, or AMI, different units will be available for different AMI brackets and room type.
Once you’ve decided to apply, you can do so online or through the mail. The application process can take between two to ten months, and there tend to be many more applicants than there are apartments. But it is a lottery, after all, and there are new apartments that are available every week.
Utilize Self Storage
One of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to maximize your space in Queens is through self storage. Safeguard’s storage facility in Richmond Hill is a convenient location with lots of unit options for whatever you need to store. With features like a drive-in loading area, individual door alarms, seven-day access, online payments, and more, it’s easy to store items in your storage unit.
Best of all, our storage units are competitively priced—and more affordable than Queens apartment space. The average rent in Queens eclipses $3.50 per square foot, but you can get many of our Richmond Hill units for only about $2 per square foot. And with our month-to-month rentals, you can avoid being locked into a long-term contract so you can rent the space you need for when you need it.
Whether you’re storing furniture, clothes, toys, electronic equipment, or something else, you can be sure that the friendly faces at Safeguard Self Storage will provide great service and great storage units. If you’re ready to efficiently expand your living space or add to your small apartment storage, give us a call and rent from our Richmond Hills storage units or one of our other New York City storage locations today.