Being told your home is being sold is unsettling, especially when you haven’t found your next place yet. If your new home isn’t ready on the day you leave, a storage unit can hold your household belongings in between: our minimum stay is just two weeks, we’re not currently taking deposits, and your storage carries on until you tell us you’re ready to move it all out.
First, know your timeline
If you rent privately in England, the rules changed on 1 May 2026. GOV.UK’s guidance for tenants says a landlord who intends to sell must give you 4 months’ notice before they can apply to court for a possession order, and can’t ask you to leave for this reason within the first 12 months of a new tenancy. If you’re still there when the notice ends, your landlord has to apply to the court for a possession order.
If you find somewhere sooner, the government’s guide for tenants says you can leave by giving your landlord two months’ notice in writing, or less if your landlord agrees to it in writing.
Different rules apply if you rent from a council or housing association, live in student halls or are a lodger. This is general information, not legal advice, so if anything about your notice doesn’t look right, Shelter and Citizens Advice can help with your own situation.
How storage bridges the gap
Your notice gives you time to plan, and storage can take the pressure off the dates:
- Book from the day you move out. Your first four weeks are paid in advance, plus contents cover if you take ours.
- Keep it as long as you need. After the two-week minimum, your storage rolls on, billed every four weeks, until you give notice, normally 14 days by email. If you don’t know your next move-in date yet, simply wait to give notice until you do.
- Get to your things when you need them, from 6am to 10pm, seven days a week, with free parking while you load and trolleys free to use.
- When you move into your new home, we refund any days you’ve paid for but won’t use, once the unit is empty and checked.
If you’re staying with friends or family for a while, store the bulky furniture and keep a few weeks’ essentials with you. Everything in the unit stays locked away, with its own alarm and CCTV watched by a professional monitoring company.
Want to plan ahead?
You can reserve a unit before your moving date is fixed. It costs £10, and that comes off your first payment when you move in. Our team can help you work out the right size, or get a price online. Call us on 0800 2545585 and we’ll help you find somewhere safe for your things while you sort out what’s next.
Related questions
- Can I keep my unit longer than I planned, or leave later than my date?
- Do I have to pay a deposit for storage?
- How do I know what unit size I need?
- Can I move house if I can’t sell mine yet?
- Can landlords store furniture between tenancies?
Further reading