Storage sheds are very popular among both homeowners and renters. The need for extra space is almost universal.
The potential uses for a shed is almost limitless. From just storing miscellaneous items, to creating a workshop, entertainment center, gardening shed, or s playhouse for the children, there is always a reason to add a good shed to your yard.
Here are just 11 of the reasons I have come up with, but I am sure you will think of many more.
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Extra Living Space
Getting certain items out of your closets and garage will free up a lot of space in your home.
Have a room that is cluttered? Move the clutter outside. Have your art materials filling up half the spare bedroom? Move your workbench to a backyard studio.
Seasonal items can be stored in your shed instead of taking up space in your living areas.
A Storage Shed Can Become A Guest Room
A storage shed can be insulated and wired to make a nice guest cottage.
Wooden doors can be replaced with solid, pre-hung, 9 lite or 11 lite fiberglass doors and windows can be added to bring in light.
Your guests will appreciate a quiet place to rest, or maybe you will make the shed a bunkhouse for the boys and give Grandma their bedroom during her stay.
The Certainty Of Knowing Where Everything Is
One in eleven Americans rent storage space. A backyard shed allows you to store your items and still have them at hand. No drives across town.
Is the Christmas tree in the basement, on a garage shelf or in the storage locker? A backyard shed can solve that mystery. A dedicated storage area in your yard is a convenience you will appreciate.
The average renter pays $94 per month for a storage locker at a facility. Even if you rent to won a shed for $150 per month, you may be paying an extra $60 per month, but at the end of 3-4 years you own it. You have real property. You can even sell it at that point.
A Place To Keep Less Attractive Items
Lawn mowers, snowblowers and other items can over-flow a garage and are quite unsightly compared to a neatly arranged garage. Get them out of your garage and into a shed.
Unsightly plastic bins stacked in the corner of your bedroom? Store them in a shed.
Protection From The Weather
Lawn chairs, yard toys and boats belong inside in the winter, not in the yard. A shed protects your valuables. Weather can really shorten your property’s lifespan.
Whether it’s the hot sun fading items or snow and rain causing rust and deterioration, leaving things outside is costly.
Protection From Bugs And Animals
Not only does a shed protect your valuables from the weather, it also protects them from bugs and vermin. A well built shed keeps the bugs and animals outside and away from your stuff.
Mice love to get into clothing, soft toys and even soft plastics like Styrofoam and chew, chew, chew. Insects will make nests and infest items.
A storage shed will help you protect your valuables by getting them out of the basement or attic where we sometimes find little creatures.
A Personal Space For Hobbies
A backyard shed makes the perfect workspace for hobbies. It can be a music studio, a craft studio, or a backyard gym.
Store Dangerous Chemicals Safely
The garage or basement is no place to store pool chemicals, solvents and other dangerous items, especially if you have children or grandchildren.
A shed can provide a secure place to lock up potentially hazardous materials.
A Pool Shed Keeps Your Pool Area Organized
Whether it’s pool chemicals, pool toys or for a changing room, a shed is a great addition to your backyard swimming fun.
Pool noodles and chaise lounges can clutter your garage quickly. Hauling things back and forth to the pool becomes a hassle. A nice pool shed fixes that and also makes the pool area more attractive and inviting.
Increased Home Value
Does A Shed Increase Your Property Value?
When you add an attractive well-built shed to your property, you increase the value of your home. A detached garage can add 100% of its cost while a shed building can bring a return investment of 50% to 80% of initial costs.
If one selects a more elaborate building such as a man-cave or she-shed, that percentage can skyrocket!
Here are a few reasons why a shed is the right choice for increasing your home’s value.
Exterior Aesthetic Appeal
An attractive garden shed, a she-shed or backyard studio can add tremendous visual appeal to your property. Realtors love to talk about “curb-appeal.” A well placed and well landscaped shed adds a lot of beauty to your property.
If the shed is sided with vinyl or painted to match your house, it adds more appeal as it fits in very naturally.
On the converse, a cheap and unattractive shed detracts from your property.
Viable Storage Option
One in eleven Americans rent off-site storage at an average cost of $94 per month. Having a storage building on your property is far more economical and convenient.
Even if you buy a shed with a rent-to-own program, you will pay a lot more for the shed, but at the end of the term, you own the shed. With a storage unit, you own nothing.
When you sell your home, the advantage of having that storage building in your yard will add real value to prospective buyers.
Even if you are selling a mobile home that will stay in the park where you live, that extra storage a shed provides will add a lot of value and make your home more desirable to buyers.
A well-built, well-maintained shed is always a good investment.
Backyard Retreat
Sometimes, you need to get away from a busy house. Whether used as a she shed, a man cave, an art or music studio or a place to entertain, that backyard shed is a very desirable feature when someone is looking to buy a home, and quite a bonus for you while you before you sell.
A backyard home office is especially valuable as more people are working from home and need a quiet place to conduct business. Insulated, wired and with a heater and air conditioner, that backyard office will have buyers scrambling to bid on your home.
No Down Side To A Backyard Shed
As long as you purchase a quality shed, not a cookie cutter shed from a cheap lot or a do-it -yourself kit, and properly maintain it, your shed will hold its value and help you if you decide to sell.
The many different uses for a shed will add value to you while you enjoy it at your home.
