When you join a branch of the military, you can expect to be relocated at some point. Chances are, during your career, you’ll change bases at least once. In addition to moving your family and yourself, you’ll have to move your possessions. You may have a two bedroom house on one base and a one bedroom at the next. That’s where self-storage can help.
Military Presence in New York
Fort Hamilton, located in southwest Brooklyn, is the last active military base in New York City. It is also nearly as old as the United States and was set up in the early 18th century to protect the coast from naval attack. From 1831 to WWII it was active in this role of protecting New York by sea.
The base has about 260 active duty military, 425 family members, 925 civilian workers, and 720 in the National Guard and Army Reserve. In total, New York has more than 8.5 million residents.
Storage Needs in New York
Keep those numbers in mind when it comes to self-storage, because New York has 65 facilities. That means there are 37,550 storage units of various sizes. With so many people living in small homes in New York, it can be difficult to find storage, so before your transfer to Fort Hamilton, start looking for an appropriate unit.
New York has a cold climate with a yearly high of 62 and freezing lows. Still, summers can get humid. For many items, you will want a unit with climate control.
Cost of Units in New York
The price of a storage unit in New York can vary greatly. You’ll find 5’x5’ units for as little as $36 to even higher than $98, and 10’x10’ units for as little as $125 and as high as $260.
Besides the price, there are other factors to consider. These include the distance you live from the storage facility, how often you will go there, and what you plan to store in it. A cheap, nearby facility is usually the best option, especially in New York, where you may mostly travel by subway and walking around with large items can be a problem.
Members of the armed forces should ask around about military discounts. Some self-storage companies offer discounts to members of the military and may even charge less if you’re deployed to another country. Just remember to bring your military ID with you when you rent.
If You’re Deployed
Another reality of military life is deployment overseas, and you could be away from New Yorkfor months or even years. You might even be in a place where it’s difficult to access the Internet, and you can get so busy that you forget a few payments on your self-storage unit.
Usually when a tenant misses several storage payments, and the facility has sent the tenant proper notification with no payments forthcoming, the facility can auction off the unit. This is covered under
New York’s lien laws. We recommend setting up automatic payments before your deployment. Not only will this avoid the possible loss of your valuables, the military requires its members to pay all bills or face docked paychecks and other measures.
On the other hand, the military recognizes these difficulties and that’s the reason for the
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. This act makes sure that military personnel renting storage get fair treatment and makes it much more difficult for a facility to put your unit up for auction. A Fort Bragg soldier
fought and won a case when his unit was illegally auctioned off.
On Storing Guns
Most self-storage facilities do not allow tenants to keep firearms in their self-storage lockers, and none allow ammo storage. Since guns are also not allowed in the barracks though, and possibly not in your on-base home, you may need a place to store your recreational firearms, so ask your local facilities before you settle on one.
The article
Storing Your Firearms: Safe Options for Gun Storage on the Storage Front website has plenty of helpful tips, including alternative places to store your firearms.
