I want to either leverage this to lower my rent to inadvertently pay for a storage unit in place of the basement, actually gain basement access, or keep it in my back pocket as there is a small chance my fiance and I want to break the lease early and this may be grounds to do so. 

A Bookkeeper can set up your Accounting system, sync your bank accounts and would be able to work with you to make sure everything is being tracked correctly and you can keep an eye on your balances.Let me know if you need any help with your Books, I would be happy to have a chat.Otherwise, QuickBooks is the most common Accounting Software and I set up all my clients with a BOX account for document storage, since it is free up to 10 GB. 

You can transform a space that you merely use for storage into a cash-flowing rental to subsidize your mortgage, your bills and other household expenses.My journey to house hackingIn Spring 2022, my neighbor mentioned he had started renting out the Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) on his property on AirBNB.

@Shawn Sopic Neither of my last two previous homes had any shelving/storage around the laundry which was located in the basement.

In my case, I have residential rentals in one LLC, commercial properties in another, self storage in a third, and my real estate company operates in a fourth.

Taking bare dirt and either building Self Storage or setting up subdivision lots for sale is a lot of fun.

My partners and I have purchase 2 KMarts, 4 warehouses, 2 mills, and a grocery store that have been converted to Class A Climate Controlled self storage facilities across the southeast, currently $160 million in assets under management at stabilization.

@Alberto Cioni   What does the lease say about the storage area?   

Finish the basement into a legal apartment and then maybe rent the 2 car garage as storage/secure car parking.People in the city are always looking for secure places to park their cars depending on where the place is.

Have you considered self storage?