Commercial real estate brokers in New Jersey say improvements in the multi-family housing and multi-tenant retail markets have buoyed investor interest in the self-storage market and poised the industry for local growth.

As recently as 2010, the states multi-family housing and mixed-use markets had increasing vacancies. This, combined with poor economic conditions and sagging job prospects, hurt self-storage occupancy rates and slowed real estate transactions and development of new facilities, said Michael Fasano, vice president of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services and regional manager in the companys Elmwood Park, N.J., office.

Recently, however, Marcus & Millichap and other commercial real estate brokers have seen an increase in self-storage transactions in the state, including the sale of multi-property portfolios and investment in self-storage conversion projects.

Before, no one wanted to come off the sidelines and go out in the market because they knew they couldnt get financing, Fasano said. Then, in 2009, lenders started lending again for multi-family properties; and then in 2010, they did the same for retail. Now, there are more dollars available for specialty products like self-storage, and thats brought investors back into the marketplace.

I think theres a broader trend going on with investors looking to real estate for a return, so theyre investing in certain types of properties that they feel are comfortable investments because theres a demand for it on the consumer side, like multi-family and self-storage, said Michael McGuinness, CEO of the New Jersey chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP), a commercial real estate development association.

Increased investor interest combined with an aging baby-boomer population with a desire to downsize living quarters but keep its possessions could signal a market ripe for new self-storage development, McGuinness said.

Fasano was more cautious in his outlook, believing the state is too soon into its economic recovery to trigger much new storage construction. Instead, he believes self-storage conversion projects will continue to rise in the sector.

I think any self-storage construction is going to be driven by a need in a specific community, he said. If a community has some vintage warehouse space and a need for more self-storage, then I think investors are willing to take advantage of that opportunity.

Marcus & Millichap has more than 1,000 investment professionals in offices nationwide and closed more than 5,000 transactions last year.

Tom Litton, a well-known speaker, trainer and owner in the self-storage industry, died Oct. 2, reportedly in his sleep. Litton was 55.

A resident of Lodi, Calif., Tom was owner of Litton Property Management Inc., a provider of third-party management and consulting services to self-storage operators worldwide. He regularly consulted with clients in Australia, Canada, England, France, New Zealand, Scotland and the United States.

Tom began his self-storage career during the industrys infancy and, over the years, managed more than 150 facilities in 11 states. A prolific writer, he wrote more than 100 magazine articles for various trade publications, including Inside Self-Storage (ISS), and mainstream media outlets such as the San Francisco Chronicle. He also published more than 60 procedural manuals for the industry and authored The Key To Success: How To Manage Self-Storage and Auditing Self-Storage: Preventing Employee Theft & Embezzlement.

Tom served on the ISS Editorial Advisory Board and was a regular speaker at the Inside Self-Storage World Expo. He was a member of the Self Storage Association, California Self Storage Association, National Auctioneers Association and California Auctioneers Association. He earned an associate in arts degree in accounting and management and a bachelor's of science degree in accounting and management.

Self-storage has lost a giant, and I have lost a friend, said Jim Chiswell, owner of Chiswell & Associates LLC. I have my so many stories and memories having worked with Tom in different roles over the past several decades. We did not agree on every subject, but I always admired his passion for advocating his point of view. I admired his creativity, his ability as a teacher and as a boss. I admired the new ideas he had every time we talked. Tom was one of those unique individuals who has touched the lives of thousands of people during his career. We were all enriched by having him be a part of our industry.

Self-storage wasnt the only industry that earned Toms interest. A driven entrepreneur, he invested in multiple business ventures including a California winery. In 2010, he graduated from the World Wide College of Auctioneering in Mason City, Iowa. He received training in real estate, automobile, farm, antique, charity, fundraising and specialty auctions, as well as schooling in the areas of auction law, vocal control, auction chant, bid calling, business management, auction marketing and auction networking. He has sold more than 15,000 spaces. In September, he joined the panel of auction professionals at StorageTreasures.com, a website designed for self-storage auction hunters.

His interest in other industries really made him a more colorful person, said ISS Publisher Troy Bix. He was a dear friend of mine and a leader in the self-storage industry. We will really miss his smiling face and his great knowledge of the business. We wish his family well.

Call centers are more important than ever in the self-storage industry, for several reasons. First, in spite of the fact that people like to use websites for research and shopping, they still want to talk to a real person when theyre buying something with which theyre unfamiliar. The more people live their lives online and the better facility operators get at marketing themselves there, the more phone calls storage businesses will generate.

Second, data capture is becoming increasingly important. Call centers generate a lot of data. You want that information to know the effectiveness of your advertising channels, the proficiency of your telephone sales reps, and your conversion rates of leads and reservations.

Lastly, call centers offer more services to callers. Theyre growing past handling only sales inquiries and becoming more involved in customer service, account management and competitive intelligence gathering.

Both the call-center and the self-storage business have changed a lot since 2000. Technology has developed in many ways, and consumers have changed their habits many times. Whats it going to be like at the intersection of the call-center and self-storage worlds in 2013? The following insight will help you make the most of that partnership.

Consider Your Goals

To make the most of your call-center relationship, you need to know what you want from the partnership. How will it fit into your current systems and business practices? Which strategic goals and tactical roles will it serve? Whos going to oversee the relationship, and how involved are they going to get?

If youve been working with a third-party call center, review your 2013 goals with your contacts. Make sure those goals align with the mission and directions youve given them. Take a step back and examine what areas that may need re-examining or revising.

Understand How You're Different

Running a call center is nothing like operating a self-storage facility. To give you some idea what its like, imagine every one of your storage units is a living, breathing, feeling person you needed to train, manage and motivate. Operating a storage facility is about asset management. Running a call center is about people management.

For another perspective, imagine each one of your doors runs on a different computer and each light bulb is wired to a different main circuit. Thats kind of what its like having a computer and phone set at every desk, and bundles of phone and data lines to power them. Self-storage is about building maintenance. Call centers are about technology and communications maintenance.

Those of you who use a call-center service dont get to experience any of this firsthand. Operators who have their own call center or have tried to cobble one together have some appreciation of the comparisons.

Understand the Challenges

The people part of running a call center is always challenging. Reps work in very tight spaces and are peppered with calls all day long. Sometime the callers are mean. Lockout and late-fee days are difficult because there will be unhappy customers. There will be times when the phone volume wont stop and the reps barely get a breather. Your idea of what should be said and how calls should be handled doesnt always match what the call-center reps envision and can certainly conflict with how callers like to be treated. Managing these competing pressures is often more art than science.

That being said, the people side of the equation is not so difficult if the call center hires the right candidates for the job, gives them proper training and support, makes things fun once in a while, and shows appreciation for their accomplishments. Ask your call center how it recruits, hires and trains staff. It should have some very deliberate methods you might find interesting.

The technology part of running a call center is also demanding. There are different approaches and many layers working together. Technologies are more complicated and interdependent. Just understanding the flow chart of how the voice, data and call recordings interface with the servers, nodes and circuits takes patient study.

The best approach is often a strategic one. How does the call center serve your particular sales and service strategies? How can you help simplify and improve the call centers ability to serve them? If the call center can grow and support its people while keeping its technology from becoming a 12-headed monster, you as the client should see some great results.

The technology side can be less challenging if the call center invests in proper scale and function, develops good relationships with its vendors and service people, and creates contingencies for the typical problems. The one constant in the hardware and software game is stuff breaks. The call center should be prepared for that.

Ninety-nine percent of call-center failures are completely invisible to you and your customers if the call center builds its technology platforms with potential hiccups in mind, investing properly so its systems allow for occasional disruptions. Ask your call center representative to talk to you about contingencies and redundancies. You might be surprised at the lengths people will go to ensure the flow of normal business.

Get the Stats

Again, call centers generate a lot of data. Ask your call-center rep how the business uses the statistics it generates for planning and to evaluate performance. Find out what information is actually available to you, and then determine how you can best use it to make better operating decisions. You may only be using a portion of whats accessible and have an opportunity to learn more about your business by looking at a wider range of information.

However, you have to be careful that you dont bury yourself in data or draw too many hasty conclusions. Even where youre capturing reliable stats, know that many things can influence them that arent apparent at first glance. There are also some activities and effects that simply cannot be measured.

When partnering with a third-party call center, know what youre getting into and make some deliberate, strategic decisions. Talk to your call-center representative and learn more about what the company does in general and what it will do for you specifically. This should put you in a good position to make the most of your call-center relationship in 2013.

Tron Jordheim is the director of PhoneSmart, an off-site sales force serving self-storage owners for more than 10 years. For more information, visit www.phone-smart.info .

By working with storage-auction buyers and adding donations from its own sales commissions, Schur Success Auction & Appraisal raised $3,000 for the Red Cross 2012 Colorado Wildfire Relief Fund over the last quarter. "With all the destructive fires we had in Colorado this year, it was the right choice," said Shannon Schur, CEO and president of the Colorado Springs, Colo.-based company.

Schur Success began its fundraising efforts in the fourth quarter of 2011, donating $2,800 to the Wounded Warrior Project, a non-profit organization that supports U.S. soldiers injured in combat. The success led the company to continue its fundraising efforts in 2012, choosing a different award recipient each quarter. In its second campaign, Schur raised more than $3,500 for St. Jude's Children's Hospital, and donated $2,000 this summer to Sense of Security, an organization that supports breast-cancer survivors.

Our wonderful bidders and clients contributed along with us, so we have made this a continuing program, Schur said. The auctioneer also offered giveaways and auctioned off T-shirts and hats to encourage donations. Together, we have raised more than $11,000 for charity over the past year.

Starlight Foundation of Colorado, which offers support to children suffering from serious illnesses and their families, will be the beneficiaries of the final campaign for 2012.

"Our goal is to raise $3,000 before Christmas for this group that makes such a difference for families during horrible times, Schur said.

Founded in Arvada, Colo., nearly 30 years ago by Ray Fenter, Schur Success is Colorados largest onsite auction company. It is the exclusive auctioneer for the city and county of Denver and a member of the Colorado Auctioneers Association, the National Auctioneer Association, the Southern Colorado Better Business Bureau and the Colorado Self Storage Association.

Storage Post Self Storage is continuing its targeted marketing efforts toward the Spanish-speaking community by spotlighting Hispanic customers during National Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs through Oct. 15. Throughout the year, the company has increased its Spanish-language marketing placements and refocused resources toward Latinos.

Storage Post officials said the company's urban-market presence in New York and New Jersey has drawn a diverse mix of customers, a large percentage of whom speak Spanish.

During National Hispanic Heritage Month, Storage Post is placing a number of Spanish-language advertisements in print publications and online. The marketing plan includes several ads with El Diario La Prensa, a leading Hispanic newspaper with a daily New York readership of more than 286,000.

In addition, a full-page, color ad appears in Yankees Magazine en Español, the first Spanish-language version of the New York Yankees fan magazine the baseball team has published.

"We have translated a number of communications materials into Spanish to better serve our storage customers, and advertising was the next logical step," said Susie O'Connell, vice president of communications. "We are proud to be part of National Hispanic Heritage Month, and we jumped at the chance to be included in the commemorative issue of Yankees Magazine en Español."

The company has also produced rental contracts, point-of-sale pieces and informational brochures in Spanish. This summer, Storage Post launched an integrated, Spanish-language version of its website that features information about the company, customized self-storage options and a blog with storage tips.

Officials said the company will expand its Hispanic marketing program next year with more inclusive advertising placements.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Storage Post operates self-storage locations in Georgia, Louisiana, New Jersey and New York.

Self-storage operator Storage Deluxe has purchased a property in Flushing, Queens, New York, for $14.3 million. Located at 41-06 Delong St., it is the company's second acquisition in the neighborhood.

Storage Deluxe will transform the 96,000-square-foot parcel into a 198,000-square-foot mixed-use center that will include a 160,000-square-foot, seven-story self-storage facility with 2,800 units and 38,000 square feet of retail/industrial flex space on the ground floor. The first of its kind in Flushing, the development will feature more than 100 street-level parking spaces, 18-foot ceilings, a pad site, and high-profile signage viewable from the Van Wyck Expressway and the Long Island Rail Road. Construction will begin in November.

The property's leasing efforts will be spearheaded by commercial real estate firm Harvest International, which found the property on the storage operator's behalf.

We anticipate many inquiries from home-décor businesses and building-material suppliers, as this part of Flushing has been a hub for these companies to set up shop, said Harvest International Vice President Daphne Zhou-Chan, who co-brokered the deal with company president Charles Chan and director of sales and leasing Theo Kontis.

Storage Deluxe was represented in the transaction by Christine Mulryan, Matia Nikolovienis and Louis Perfetto of Cohen & Perfetto LLP, a Manhattan-based real estate law firm.

Harvest International provides commercial and industrial brokerage services worldwide. The company has completed several transactions in Flushing, including the acquisition and redevelopment of a former Caldor department store at 136-20 Roosevelt Ave.

Founded in 1998, Storage Deluxe is a New York-based owner, developer and operator of self-storage facilities. The company has developed more than 30 facilities in the New York metro area. After selling a 27-property portfolio to self-storage real estate investment trust CubeSmart this summer, the company still owns several facilities in Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens, N.Y., with others coming soon in these boroughs.

BookStorageOnline.com, a new comparison-shopping website for self-storage consumers, officially launched today. The aggregator will help potential customers find storage units that meet their needs. Any U.S. self-storage operator can list his facility information for free, paying a fee only when a customer actually rents a unit.

During search, the website returns results for a user's desired storage-unit price, location and size. The user can then contact facilities via phone or e-mail or rent directly from the website.

Its a storage search for power users. People who know what size they need and understand our role in the market, theyre the ones who will benefit most from our advanced search functionality, said Brian Barwig, marketing executive for BookStorageOnline.com. This includes people who store as part of their line of workmovers, home stagers, pharmaceutical repsas well as people who have used storage in the past.

BookStorageOnline.com provides online exposure for self-storage operations via visibility on major search engines and partnerships with other online brands.

Storage Asset Management (SAM), a York, Pa.-based self-storage management and consulting company, is holding a Shoes 2 Share Shoe Drive through Jan. 31 at 23 of its managed self-storage facilities along the East Coast. The facilities will accept shoes of any shape, size, style or condition at their customer service centers.

Donated items will be given to the Shoes 2 Share organization, which distributes footwear directly to children and their families through programs associated with orphanages, shelters, rehabilitation and feeding programs. The ministrys beneficiary list includes international and domestic programs that help individuals participate in school, church, sports, work and everyday activities.

For many adults and children around the world, shoes are not an option. They simply cannot afford them, said Tina Krueger, SAM marketing manager. Shoes, something simple we take for granted, are critical for many reasons; preventing disease and infection, providing comfort, and improving self-confidence are just a few.

Amherst, N.Y.-based real estate investment trust Sovran Self Storage Inc., which operates the Uncle Bobs Self Storage brand, will pay its shareholders a quarterly dividend of $.45 per share of common stock for the third quarter of 2012 that ended Sept. 30. The dividend will be paid on Oct. 26 to shareholders on record as of Oct. 11.  

Sovrans annualized dividend is $1.80 per share, which, based on today's opening price, equates to an annual rate of approximately 3.1 percent.

Sovran operates 443 properties in 25 states. The company is actively acquiring additional self-storage facilities.