Looking for a new side hustle that’s passive, and the easiest way to make a quick couple hundred bucks a month? You’ll find it in the Neighbor storage app by renting out your extra storage space.
What is the Neighbor Storage app?
The Neighbor storage app (or Neighbor.com as it’s referred to as well) turns the self-storage industry into a side hustle. Essentially, hosts looking to earn some passive income rent private storage space to renters on a month-to-month basis.
With availability in all 50 states, the average host earns $100 to $300 a month just for renting out their unused space. That can almost add up to an extra $4,000 a year!
Intriguing, right? If so, let’s get into the nitty-gritty of what makes Neighbor a unique and passive way to earn some extra cash with your extra room!
Types of storage you can get paid for
Not sure if you have the right type of storage to earn some extra money? Luckily, renters are looking for a wide variety of storage facilities options, not just traditional self-storage units.
Some examples of types of available space that you can offer as public storage include:
- Basement
- Attic
- Spare bedroom
- Closet or Pantry
- Side Yard or Back Yard
- Unpaved Lot or Paved Lot
- Shed
- Garage
- Driveway
- Car Port
- Street or parking space
- Warehouse
- Parking Lot
- Business Building
- Retail
- Shipping Container
You can offer to store anything from a college kid’s belongs for the summer to parking for cars, an RV pad, boats, trailers, and even business inventory, to name a few!
If you’re like me and automatically wonder about potentially hosting stuff you aren’t comfortable with, you have the right to turn away particular items from your rental space. Plus, Neighbor prohibits renters from storing potentially harmful items, such as:
- Explosives
- Illegal substances
- Anything stolen
- Toxic chemicals
- Fuel
- Flammable materials
- Firearms and ammunition
- Perishable items
Also, Neighbor doesn’t provide coverage or allow for additional items such as artwork, cash, collectibles, and jewelry.
How much can you make on Neighbor storage?
How much a host can make will vary on how high demand is in your area and what type of storage space you can offer. On average, hosts earn $100 – $300 a month, averaging almost $4,000 a year.
What if a renter (or host) cancels?
If a host needs to cancel a rental prior to starting, they can do so at no additional cost or without any issue. If the rental period has already begun, you’ll need to give them a 30-day notice or face a $60 termination fee.
Depending on how close to the start date of the agreement a renter cancels, it will affect if they pay or not. If it’s up to four days before the rental begins or within 24 hours of the rental start date, they’ll get a full refund.
If they wait until three days or less, they’ll get an 80% refund. If it’s after the start date, they’ll receive no refund at all.
How Neighbor works for a Host
Signing up with Neighbor storage and creating your first listing is easy – it’s a quick multi-step process that can have you earning extra cash relatively quickly.
1. Create and verify your Neighbor account.
First, you’ll create an account with your name, email, password, and phone number. Then you’ll receive an email to verify your account to ensure you have the correct access.
2. Set up your listing.
The app will take you through a step-by-step process to help you get your storage area listed. You’ll need to provide the following information as you build your listing:
- Description of the storage area
- Dimensions
- Type of storage (garage, unpaved lot, etc.)
- When and how the renter can access the area
- Features of the space, such as:
- Climate controlled
- Smoke-free
- Pet-free
- Secure site (if it has locks, deadbolts, passcodes, etc.)
- Security cameras
- Smoke or carbon dioxide alarms
- If the site is only for vehicle, RV, or boat storage
- Business-specific storage
Pro Tip: When preparing to write the description for your listing, search similar listings to pick up tips and tricks to help it sell more quickly!
The best part is – you get to set your price. Neighbor can give you a recommended range based on similar listings in your area with their rent estimator, but it’s ultimately your decision on how much to charge for your space.
Lastly, you can choose to discount your listing for the first month to help further attract renters. If they only choose to rent for one month, this discount won’t work.
3. Verify your profile.
Now that you’re ready to post your listing, you’ll need a final verification to ensure that you’re not some shady character trying to steal someone’s stuff.
Besides uploading a profile photo and bio, you’ll need to verify your host account. You will confirm your email and phone via text and provide a picture of your photo ID to complete your verification. Asking for a photo ID and electronic confirmations is to help deter people from creating fake profiles to scam renters.
4. Respond to renters.
Your listing is officially live! Now what? Here’s when you sit back and wait for the requests to roll in. You’ll receive notification via email and text if your listing is reserved or a renter sends you a message.
You’ll have 24 hours to review each submission and what the renter wants to store and when. You can approve them if it’s a match and your listing is removed.
If not, you can continue accepting requests until you find one that works with your storage area, timeline, and other restrictions.
5. Schedule a move-in date and time.
By communicating through the Neighbor app, you can set a move-in date and time. Let them know if you’ll be present or if they need a key and any other details to help move-in day go smoothly.
6. Get paid!
Sit back – your job is done, and the passive earnings are about to begin! You’ll be paid at the end of the 30-day rental period by Neighbor. The payment will always occur on the same day of the month and be made via direct deposit through Stripe. Stripe is a PCI-compliant payment system, which means your bank account and information is secure.
Even if a renter is late with the payment or flakes completely, you’ll never have to chase down your earnings. Neighbor will continue to pay for as long as the extra space is reserved. When they search for storage, renters must enter their credit card information, so there’s no skirting payment unless their card declines or expires.
If a renter cancels their reservation before their 30-day cycle ends, there’s no prorating the cost, and you’ll still receive the entire fee.
Neighbor Storage Fees
A pretty important question about Neighbor storage is what will cost me? Luckily, this is a passive income opportunity where you won’t have a lot of fees cutting into your profit.
Listing your storage space is always 100% free. Every time you receive a payment, you’ll have a processing fee of 4.9% of the total cost, plus a 30 cents service fee per payout. (Not sure what’s up with the $0.30 fee, but it’s similar to what Etsy charges every time you list an item.)
While they’re not much money, these fees cover the cost of automated payments, Neighbor’s Payout Protection coverage, and Neighbor’s $1,000,000 Host Guarantee.
Neighbor does also charge a fee to renters, but it’s not very clear what the rate is. It looks like it’s about 10% – 15%, depending upon location and type of storage.
Is the Neighbor app safe?
Yes, both the Neighbor app and renting out your storage area through it are safe. They have several precautions in place, such as vetting both renters and hosts with photo IDs and standard verification practices. They also highly recommend that you only communicate through the app so that there aren’t any additional safety issues with sharing personal contact information. Luckily, the majority of renters will be from your own neighborhoods and surrounding areas.
As far as insurance goes, Neighbor offers a free $1,000,000 host guarantee for personal liability for you as a host. Renters can also opt into property protection plans to provide a renter guarantee that if any disaster or accident does happen, it’ll be covered.
Pros and Cons of Earning Money with Neighbor
Now that you know the ins and outs of becoming a host with Neighbor storage, let’s recap with a list of pros and cons to decide if you should apply today:
Pros:
- Very passive, easy to do, with little work involved
- Protection is offered for both hosts and renters in case of an accident
- Processing fees are relatively small
- Various storage options are accepted, making it easy for your listing to be accepted
- You can choose when the storage area is accessible (24/7, only during business hours, by appointment only, etc.)
- No paperwork; the great thing is that it’s all done through the Neighbor app
- Neighbor handles all payments, so it’s secure, and you won’t get stiffed on rent
- All hosts and renters are screened and verified to minimize scams
- No long-term contracts; all agreements are month-to-month
- Renters must contact hosts 24 hours prior to accessing the storage area
Cons:
- Neighbor’s host liability coverage covers disasters but not property damage or insurance deductibles, meaning it’s limited. The coverage starts when your homeowner’s insurance doesn’t apply and you’ve possibly paid your deductible. Check in with your insurance agent for more details on how this works and what your policy covers.
- To have a chance at making money, you’ll have to price your listing competitively.
In all of my research, the Neighbor storage reviews have been positive. They have 2620 reviews on their website, and the Reddit reviews are positive as well.
In digging through BBB and Trustpilot (3.7 stars), Neighbor storage review numbers are a little lower than I expected. After reading the complaints, many of them are due to one of two issues:
- The renter struck a side deal with a host outside of Neighbor and got ripped off.
- The renter didn’t cancel their month-to-month contract in a timely manner and got hit with another month of charges.
About half of the BBB complaints were addressed and resolved by the customer service team at Neighbor, while all of the bad reviews on Trustpilot were addressed by Neighbor as well.
The majority of the complaints can be avoided by using common sense, only communicating through the app, and canceling your contract on time. Luckily, the large majority of them were submitted by storage renters rather than hosts.
Ready to start your passive income side hustle with the Airbnb of storage? Sign up for Neighbor today!
Looking for another great way to earn some extra money with a side hustle? Try one of the following: