Self Storage Between Tenancies A Landlords Void Period Playbook

Last tenant gone, viewings booked, and their furniture still in the way?

The void started last Monday. The last tenant handed back the keys and left cleanly enough, except for the sofa in the living room, the chest of drawers still in the second bedroom, and two spare fridges taking up half the kitchen. The property is technically empty. In practice, it is not. You have viewings booked for Thursday.

That is the moment most small landlords know well. The furniture is not really a problem, until it is blocking everything else. You cannot clean properly around a sofa. You cannot repaint a room with a chest of drawers in front of the wall. And viewings into a cluttered space are harder for a prospective tenant to picture. The stuff has to go somewhere.

This is a practical guide to using a self storage unit during a void period: what goes in, how long you need, what it costs versus what you lose by leaving the furniture in place, and how the terms work so you are not paying for more time than you use.

Why a void period costs more than the empty weeks

The financial pressure of a void period is real but it is also solvable. Every week the property is empty is rent you will not recover. But the furniture in the way is often what stretches the gap, not the property itself.

The real blocker is usually the furniture, not the property

A property that shows clean and empty lets the next tenant see it properly. They are not navigating around someone else’s sofa or wondering whether the kitchen is big enough because two fridges are filling the corner. They see space, light and the rooms as they will actually live in them. Viewings into clutter convert more slowly. The property takes longer to re-let and the void runs longer. The furniture is the blocker, and moving it off-site is the fix.

This is not about presentation for its own sake. It is a practical cost calculation. If moving the furniture out by Monday shortens the void by a week, the question is simply whether the cost of a storage unit for two or three weeks is less than one week of lost rent. For most small UK landlords holding a property in a market town, the answer is usually yes, often by a clear margin.

What a faster re-let is actually worth

The simplest version of the sum: take your weekly rent and compare it against the weekly cost of a nearby storage unit that holds your furniture. You will not find prices on this page because unit costs vary by location and size, and you should run the numbers against your actual property. What you will find on the Wigwam pricing page is a current guide to how much storage costs in UK market towns. The sums are usually straightforward.

When a void-period unit earns its keep

The storage unit is the right tool when it is doing one of three specific jobs for a landlord. Recognise your situation here, because the logic is a little different for each.

Clearing leftover furniture so the property shows empty and clean

Some tenants leave cleanly and take everything. Others leave a sofa because they have nowhere to send it, or a dining table that did not fit the new place. You need the property clean and empty for viewings. The unit holds the furniture for two or three weeks while you get the place ready and find the next tenant. When the new tenancy starts, you collect whatever you want to keep or arrange disposal for what you do not. The unit goes back and unused days are refunded. This is the most common void-period use and the one with the clearest cost logic.

Holding your own spare white goods and furnishings between tenants

Furnished and part-furnished lets often mean the landlord owns appliances and furniture that live in the property between tenancies but that he wants to protect during changeover. A pair of good appliances stored in a clean, individually alarmed unit for a couple of weeks is better than leaving them in a property where tradespeople are coming and going for repairs. They go in when the tenant leaves, they come back when the new tenancy starts, and they are in the same condition they were when they went in.

Storing while you run repairs, redecorating or a light refurb

Sometimes the void is also a renovation window. You are having the bathroom retiled or the kitchen repainted, and you need the furniture clear of the rooms while the work is done. The unit holds the contents while the trades are in, and you bring everything back when the property is ready. One note on this: Wigwam sites are unmanned. If you are sending a removals firm or contractor to collect items from or drop items into your unit, someone from your own side needs to be present. Wigwam does not sign for deliveries or receive goods on your behalf.

Ready to size a unit near your property? Get a quote and see what is available close to you at quote.wigwamstorage.co.uk.

What to store, and what storage will not do

Being honest about this upfront saves everyone time. Units are clean, dry and secure. Most household and landlord furniture travels well. Some things do not, and it is better to know before you book.

Furniture, white goods and soft furnishings that travel well

The contents of a standard furnished or part-furnished rental move into a storage unit without trouble: sofas, beds and bed frames, dining furniture, wardrobes, chest of drawers, white goods (washing machines, fridges, dishwashers), flat-pack pieces, boxed kitchen goods, soft furnishings and linen if they go in clean and dry. Units are individually alarmed, clean and dry. The goods are secure, and you are the only person with access.

Think about how items go in. Soft furnishings should be dry before storage. Appliances should be empty and wiped down. Mattresses stored upright in a mattress bag rather than flat will keep their shape better. None of this requires special equipment; it is the same commonsense care you would apply to any removal.

What to leave out

Units are not climate-controlled. They are clean, dry and secure, and for the contents of a standard furnished let that is enough. But if you have items that genuinely require temperature or humidity regulation, a standard storage unit is not the right place for them. This matters for the insurance too: atmospheric and climatic damage is excluded from the contents-protection policy, so items that need temperature control are not covered if that is what causes the damage. The contents-protection page has the detail.

Wigwam does not store vehicles, vans, caravans, trailers or boats. If those are part of what needs to move during the void, you will need to arrange that separately.

Sizing the unit to the property

Pick a unit size that fits the contents you are moving, not the property as a whole. A part-furnished let does not need as much space as a fully furnished family home.

A rough room-by-room guide

Here are starting points. They are rough guides; the quote tool will give you a more accurate size once you describe what you are storing.

A studio or one-bed flat with typical contents, sofa, bed, small dining table and a couple of white goods, usually fits comfortably into a 25 to 50 square foot unit.

A two-bed part-furnished let with living room furniture, two bedroom sets, white goods and the usual accumulation of a furnished let generally needs somewhere in the range of 50 to 75 square feet.

A three-bed furnished property with full bedroom furniture across three rooms, living room and dining room contents, and a full set of white goods will typically need 75 to 100 square feet or more, depending on what is going in.

These are not fixed rules. The right way to confirm size is to use the quote tool or speak to the team at your nearest Wigwam site. They can work through the contents with you.

What a removals firm or letting agent can tell you

The removals firm doing the move can usually estimate the cubic footage with reasonable accuracy from experience. If you are managing this yourself, take a list of the larger items and the Wigwam team at your local site can advise. Most people store a bit more than they expect to, so going slightly larger than your first estimate is rarely a mistake.

How long: matching the unit to your void period

The short answer is this: the minimum stay is two weeks, and if you re-let early, unused days are refunded. You are not paying for time you do not use.

Why a two-week minimum suits a typical void

Most void periods for a standard UK furnished let land somewhere between one and four weeks, measured from the previous tenant vacating to the new tenant moving in. A two-week minimum maps onto that window without trapping you in a longer contract. If your re-let moves faster than expected and you need the furniture back in the property after ten days, you give notice, vacate the unit, and unused days come back to you. That is the shape of the term, and it is designed precisely for a landlord whose timeline is measured in weeks.

What happens if the void runs long

If the re-let takes longer than planned, the unit rolls on. There is no penalty for staying beyond the minimum. You keep access, the goods stay secure, and when you are ready to vacate you give 14 days’ notice. The unit closes at the end of that notice period. No surprise month-block billing. Full details are in the terms and conditions.

What does it cost, and does it pay back in a faster re-let?

The cost of a storage unit during a void period needs to be set against what the void itself is costing you, not against zero. That is the right frame.

The simple sum

Take your weekly rent. That is the daily cost of an empty property multiplied by seven. Now look at the weekly cost of a unit near your property, sized to hold the furniture you need to move. In most UK market towns, the weekly cost of a storage unit that holds the contents of a one or two-bed furnished let is a fraction of a single week’s rent. If clearing the furniture off-site shortens the void by even a few days, the unit has paid for itself.

No prices are quoted here because they vary by location and unit size. The Wigwam pricing page gives you current UK market-town rates. Run the sum against your specific property and your specific rent. The numbers tend to make the case on their own.

Other costs to budget for

Two other costs to have in mind.

First, the deposit. A refundable deposit is required when you take out a unit. It is returned to you after you vacate and give 14 days’ notice, once the account is settled and any amounts owed have been deducted. It is not a cost in the long run, but it is cash you are holding with us until the unit closes.

Second, contents protection. This is mandatory. You can take Wigwam’s RSA Self Storage Customers’ Goods policy or provide evidence of your own equivalent cover. If you use the Wigwam policy, declare the full replacement value of what you are storing. Under-insurance is settled proportionally, so declaring the correct value matters. The contents-protection page has the full details of what is and is not covered. Do not rely on this article for insurance guidance; read the policy specifics there.

Storage in your market town

A unit near your property makes the whole operation simpler and cheaper. The removals firm is not travelling far between the rental and the facility, which keeps the job shorter and the cost lower.

Why location to the property matters in a void

A storage facility two streets from your rental property and a facility twenty miles out are different propositions. The closer the unit, the shorter the move, the cheaper the removal, and the more practical it is to drop in and collect a single item if you need to. Wigwam’s network sits in UK market towns, which is where a large proportion of small UK buy-to-let landlords hold their stock. That proximity is part of how the maths works.

Nearest Wigwam locations and the full location hub

Two verified examples:

Wigwam Self Storage Bath serves landlords in Bath and the surrounding Somerset towns. If you are letting a property in or around Bath, a unit there keeps the move short and the costs clean.

Wigwam Self Storage Lincoln covers Lincolnshire landlords letting in and around the city. Lincoln is a market-town example of the kind of location the Wigwam network is built around.

For a full list of our UK market-town locations, the locations hub shows every site. You will find the one closest to your property there.

The honest bit: your contract, access and what is covered

This section covers the mechanics of taking out a unit, how access works in practice, and what the insurance does and does not cover. Read it before you book rather than after.

Contract, deposit and notice terms

The minimum stay is two weeks. You pay a refundable deposit at the start. You access the unit on your own terms during the stay. When you are ready to leave, you give 14 days’ notice. Once you have vacated and the account is settled, the deposit is returned, less anything owed.

If you re-let faster than expected and clear out before the minimum is up, unused days are refunded.

The unit rolls on month by month if you need longer. No penalty, no surprise billing. The full terms are at wigwamstorage.co.uk/terms-conditions/.

A note on jurisdiction: these terms are written for England and Wales. If you are letting property in Scotland or Northern Ireland, tenancy law and some contractual practices differ. Speak to a solicitor if you are unsure how the terms apply to your situation.

Access, security and what being unmanned means for a landlord

Smart entry gives you access between 6am and 10pm, seven days a week. Units are individually alarmed. You control access to your unit; Wigwam staff are not stationed at the site.

What that means in practice: if you are sending a removals firm to drop off furniture, you or someone you have authorised from your own side must be there. Wigwam does not sign for couriers, receive deliveries, or accept goods on your behalf. If a contractor is collecting something from your unit, the same applies. Someone from your side needs to be present.

This is not a limitation in practice for most landlords; it is just the shape of how unmanned smart-access storage works. Plan the move accordingly.

Contents protection and what the insurance covers

Contents cover is mandatory. You have two options: take Wigwam’s RSA Self Storage Customers’ Goods policy or provide evidence of your own equivalent cover.

The RSA policy operates on a New-for-Old basis. You must declare the full replacement value of what you are storing. If you declare a lower value and need to make a claim, the payout is reduced in proportion to the under-insurance. Declare accurately.

A few exclusions that matter for a landlord storing furniture and white goods: atmospheric and climatic damage is not covered. Theft claims require evidence of forced entry to the unit. The full policy details, including exclusions and how to opt in or prove your own cover, are on the contents-protection page. Read that page rather than relying on this summary; the specifics matter.

A simple void-period checklist for landlords

Before you book a unit:

• Confirm what is going in and make a rough list of the larger items.
• Use the list to estimate the unit size you need, or call the local Wigwam team and talk it through.
• Decide who is doing the move and confirm they can be present at the unit when goods are dropped off.
• Check the full replacement value of what you are storing so you can declare it correctly for contents protection.
• Book the unit for the likely length of your void, remembering that unused days are refunded if you finish early and the unit rolls on if you need longer.

On the day:

• Someone from your side is present at the unit for access.
• Soft furnishings go in clean and dry.
• Appliances go in empty and clean.
• Note the unit alarm and entry details when you open the account.

When you are ready to close:

• Give 14 days’ notice in line with the terms.
• Vacate the unit and confirm the account is settled.
• The deposit is returned once the notice period is complete and the account is clear.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I store belongings a tenant left behind, and is that my decision to make?

You can physically store a tenant’s abandoned belongings in a unit, but whether and when you are entitled to remove, store, dispose of or sell them is a legal question, not a storage one, so get that right before anything moves. Tenants leaving items behind is one of the most common void-period headaches, and the temptation is to treat it as just more furniture to clear. The complication is that goods left by a former tenant may still legally be theirs, and the rules around abandoned goods, the notices you must give, and how long you must hold items before disposing of them are governed by law. This is squarely a matter for your solicitor or your letting agent, and it differs across England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

What a storage unit gives you in the meantime is a clean, dry, secure place to hold those goods while you follow the correct process, rather than leaving them blocking the property or risking a dispute by binning them too soon. Holding the items safely, individually alarmed and out of the way, can actually help you demonstrate that you handled them responsibly. But the decision about what you are allowed to do with them, and the paper trail you need, sits with you and your legal adviser. We can store the goods; we cannot tell you your rights over them. The honest sequence is: take advice on your obligations first, hold the items in a unit while you meet them, and dispose of or return them only once you are clear you are entitled to. Do not let the practicality of the unit rush the legal side.

Can I have new appliances or replacement furniture delivered to the unit before a new tenancy?

You can take delivery of new appliances or furniture to a unit, but only if you or someone from your side is there to receive it, because the sites are unmanned and no one here signs for or accepts goods on your behalf. Landlords often buy a replacement washing machine, fridge or sofa between tenancies and want somewhere to keep it until the property is ready. Holding it in the unit for a week or two, clean, dry and secure, is sensible, particularly if trades are still in the property and you do not want a new appliance knocked about on site.

The rule is the same one that applies to any delivery: the body of this article explains that for any drop-off, someone from your own side must be present, and Wigwam does not receive deliveries or open units for couriers. So when you order the appliance, book the delivery slot to coincide with a time you or your contractor will be at the unit to take it in. Access is by smart entry from 6am to 10pm, seven days a week, which gives plenty of room to line a delivery up with a site visit. Make sure new appliances go in clean and dry and stay boxed or covered, and remember that contents cover is mandatory and should reflect the full replacement value of what is in the unit, including any new items you add. If you are buying several things in, it is worth updating your declared value so the cover keeps pace with what you are actually storing.

Whose insurance covers the furniture, mine or the tenant’s, while it is in the unit?

For goods you own and store, the cover is yours to arrange, and contents protection is mandatory at Wigwam regardless. As a landlord storing your own appliances, furnishings and white goods during a void, you either take the RSA Self Storage Customers’ Goods policy or provide evidence of your own equivalent cover, and you declare the full replacement value, because under-insurance is settled in proportion. A tenant’s contents insurance covers the tenant’s own possessions, not your landlord furnishings, and once a property is empty between tenancies there is no tenant policy in play anyway, so the cover on your stored goods has to be yours.

If part of what you are storing is a former tenant’s abandoned belongings, the insurance position is more delicate, because those goods may not be yours and your cover is set up for your own contents. That is one more reason to take advice on abandoned goods rather than simply absorbing them into your own declared value. The exclusions matter too: the policy covers theft only where there is evidence of forced entry, and atmospheric and climatic damage is excluded, which is part of why temperature-sensitive items do not belong in a unit. We signpost the cover and how declaration works; we do not give insurance advice, and questions about how your landlord policy, your tenant’s policy and the storage cover interact are best put to your broker or insurer. The contents-protection page sets out exactly what the storage policy covers, and reading it before you declare a value is time well spent.

Is the cost of a void-period storage unit a deductible expense against my rental income?

That depends on your tax position and how the expense relates to your letting, so it is a question for your accountant rather than something we can answer. Whether storage costs incurred during a void can be set against rental income, and how, turns on your specific circumstances, the nature of the let, and current tax rules, all of which sit outside what a storage provider can advise on. We do not give tax or financial advice, and getting it wrong is not worth the small saving.

What we can do is make the record-keeping side easy, which is what your accountant will want. Keep your quote, your invoices and the dates the unit was in use, so the cost is clearly tied to the void period for the specific property. The body of this article frames the real decision as a simple sum anyway: the weekly cost of a unit set against the weekly rent you lose while the property sits empty and cluttered, and in most market towns clearing the furniture to re-let faster pays for the unit several times over before any tax question even arises. So treat the deductibility as a bonus to confirm with your accountant, not as the reason to use storage. The reason to use it is a faster, cleaner re-let. Run the numbers against your actual rent using the figures on the pricing page, and let your accountant handle how the cost is treated for tax.

Can I use the unit through a longer refurbishment, such as EPC or compliance works, not just a quick turnaround?

Yes. The unit suits a longer compliance or upgrade project just as well as a quick changeover, and the flexible terms are what make it work. Landlords increasingly face works that take longer than a normal void: bringing a property up to an EPC rating, rewiring, a new boiler and heating system, or other compliance and improvement work that needs the rooms clear of furniture for weeks rather than days. Storing the contents off-site keeps them clean, dry and secure and out of the trades’ way, while the property is worked on properly.

The terms flex to fit. Above the two-week minimum the unit rolls on month by month with no penalty for a longer stay, so a project that runs to six or eight weeks simply continues, and when it finishes you give 14 days notice, vacate, and the deposit comes back once the account is settled, with any unused days refunded. The same delivery rule applies throughout: if a removals firm or contractor is moving items in or out of the unit, someone from your side must be present, because the site is unmanned. Bear in mind the unit holds the furniture and household goods, not the works themselves, and not anything hazardous from the building side. For the project planning, the body of this article’s checklist still applies: list what is going in, size the unit with the quote tool, and confirm full replacement value for the contents cover. A longer refurb is genuinely one of the situations where off-site storage earns its keep, because the alternative, shuffling furniture room to room around live works, slows the job and risks the contents. For the full terms on a longer stay, see the terms and conditions.

When the furniture is off-site, the property is clear, the viewings go well, and the next tenant signs. The window closes. That is the whole job. If you are in the middle of a void period right now and need a unit near your property, the quickest next step is a quote.

Get a quote at quote.wigwamstorage.co.uk