Stuff, stuff, stuff. Piled in the attic, the garage, and the trunk. Do you ever feel like you are overrun with stuff? Do you have that frustrated feeling that you are spending inordinate amounts of time searching in piles. Me too!
To provided some added motivation for all of us to purge the clutter, I have gone in search of some intel on the Real Cost of Too Much Stuff. What I have found is pretty eye opening. Hang on to your lawn chair (that is unless you have 5 others just like it that never get used).
Monetarily
According to the Self Storage Association, the self storage industry generated approximately $27.2 billion in revenue in the United States in 2014. Over the last 40 years, this business has been the fastest growing segment of the real commercial estate industry. There are thousands upon thousands of storage facilities in the United States and worldwide.
It took the self storage industry more than 25 years to build its first billion square feet of space; it added the second billion square feet in just 8 years (1998-2005) (per SSA).
Some 47% of self-storage unit renters in the U.S. have an annual income under $50,000 notes the Self Storage Association. According to CostHelper.com, the average price of a 5 ft. X 5ft. rental unit in the United States is $40 to $50 a month with a 10ft. X 15ft. unit running anywhere from $75 to $140 per month. Month after month this can really add up.
Sure some people rent storage units while moving, on deployment, or for business purposes. But many people rent storage units to store stuff they have simply run out of room in their residence for. Based upon the monthly costs above, the cost to keep this extra stuff can be pretty steep.
Did you know that U.S. Home Organization Products Industry is a more than $8.8 billion dollar business that is expected to continue to growth 3.5% per year through 2019?
Our national obsession (I am definitely speaking to myself as well here) with attempting to bring some order to the clutter chaos, has helped fuel this steadily growing industry. A 2013 Houzz & Home Survey, shows that almost half of homeowners, 42 percent, cited the need for improving storage and efficiency as a reason for renovation projects. There are more than 4,000 members of the National Association of Professional Organizers. And we consumers pack the parking lot and our trunks at The Container Store and IKEA on a regular basis.
Mentally
Although there is not a lot of hard data available, many scientists and psychologists give credence to the idea that clutter and increased stress levels go hand in hand. I know personally, that when everywhere I look stuff strewn all about, I start to feel agitated. Check out this great article by Mikael Cho on LifeHacker titled How Clutter Affects Your Brain (And What You Can Do About It).
After reading that article, I now understand why I get a feeling of exhilaration when I donate extra, perfectly good stuff, to local charities in my area.
Environmentally
All that stuff that we collect has to be made utilizing limited natural resources. According to Worldwatch Institute, “Calculations show that the planet has available 1.9 hectares of biologically productive land per person to supply resources and absorb wastes—yet the average person on Earth already uses 2.3 hectares worth. These “ecological footprints” range from the 9.7 hectares claimed by the average American to the 0.47 hectares used by the average Mozambican”. Though resource use amounts are the subject of much debate, it is becoming increasingly clear that the balance of product demand vs. long-term resources available for production is skewed. We are looking at rapidly increasing environmental costs for living lives with too much stuff.
Okay, all these numbers about overconsumption and their meaning to our lives today and into the future are pretty sobering. I chose, though, to look at them as the kick in the pants I need to redouble my efforts to declutter and to carefully evaluate those things that I chose to acquire.
And the great thing is that I can start small, concentrating on paring down and decluttering one area at a time. I can gradually find new homes for items I really do not need but that could be useful to others. And I can explore ways to recycle items that can then be given a new life in a different form. The best thing is that we can all do this by simply starting small.
For more consumption reducing tips:
We started de-cluttering our home of too much stuff several years ago. We went with the philosophy that less is more and I’m happy to say, we’ve done quite well. We only added a storage building to our yard this year after 15 years in our home and that was mostly for yard tools and Christmas decorations.
I enjoy repurposing items around the house and find lots of ideas on Pinterest and Hometalk. Thanks for sharing this insightful post with us at Merry Monday.
Sounds like you have really got a handle on keeping things decluttered.
We made a big move recently, and got rid of so much stuff. Sadly, we need to do it ahead. It’s crazy how things just sneak back into our lives, especially with kids.
The stuff piles up again so quickly doesn’t it.
When my husband cleaned out his parent’s home he put some of their keepsakes in our spare bedroom. That was in addition to stuff I had saved from my former apartment life. When his niece asked if she could stay with us last year we did a major cleaning. All the apartment stuff and most of his parent’s stuff had to go. It just wasn’t worth it to keep it around anymore. It ended up being one of my highlights of last year. So freeing to have the upstairs be clutter free. We are going to do another clean-out later this year. Stuff I saved that we never used is going to go.
This post came at the perfect time as I’ve been on a declutter frenzy lately! I’ve never really know why or how to explain it, but less stuff just FEELS good!
It is as if a weight is lifted when there is less stuff around.
We just moved from a very large house into one that is about 2,000 square feet. The amount of “stuff” we have is ridiculous and we are getting rid of it a little at a time! It actually makes me feel good to get rid of things…I can’t wait until more of it is gone! Thanks so much for sharing this post at Share The Wealth Sunday…it was a very timely post for me 🙂
xoxo
Lisa
Amazing how much stuff you find in cabinets and closets when you get to clearing them out. See you again soon at Share The Wealth Sunday.