Small Home Storage: Maximize Your Storage Space

By: Terry Sheridan

Published: January 21, 2011

Your small home has more storage space than you think. For relatively little money but a lot of common sense and ingenuity, there’s space to be found.

Bunkbeds save space by stacking beds and adding storage space, and--bonus--kids love them. Image: Rooms To Go Kids

Finding storage space in a small home doesn’t require remodeling or room additions. Start by getting rid of accumulated stuff. Take a hard look at room space, and buy furniture and storage items that can do double-duty.
Here are six tips to maximize storage that won’t empty your savings account:

1. De-clutter. It’s the first thing architect Sarah Susanka of “Not So Big House” tells clients who talk of expanding their homes. Haven’t used something for a couple of years? Pitch it, she says. You’ll be amazed at how much space opens up when you do.

Cost: $0.

2. Platform/bunkbeds. Add space and eliminate a dresser in a small bedroom with a three-drawer or six-drawer platform bed. Find one at a furniture or big department store, and online.

Cost: $400 to $600, queen size.

Bunkbeds won’t have drawers, but save space by stacking beds. And kids love ‘em. They come in a variety of styles and configurations. Some will convert to two twin beds.

Cost: $300 to $550.

3. Shoe organizers. They’re for so much more than just shoes. Hang one in a kitchen closet or pantry, and use it as your small home catch-all for remotes, keys, notepads, cell phones, and chargers, and other household essentials. It’ll free up a kitchen drawer or two for other uses.

Cost: Less than $20.

4. Toe-kick storage. The space under your kitchen cabinets is a treasure trove of storage possibilities. Put placemats, napkins, cookie sheets, and how-to manuals there. Hire a cabinet-maker to install them, or request them as a custom feature in a new-cabinet order.

Cost: About $300 per drawer.

5. Floor-to-ceiling storage. Furniture-style 6-foot-tall bookcases don’t use all available wall space. But extend shelving that extra two feet to the ceiling, and you’ve got room for a lot more books, knickknacks, or art objects. Home improvement stores have brackets and shelves in a variety of colors and sizes to match your décor.

Cost: Under $200, depending on the space size.

Terry Sheridan is an award-winning writer who has covered real estate and home ownership issues for more than 20 years. She’s owned homes ranging from 1,500 square feet to 3,000 square feet

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