SurePoint Self Storage has acquired 2.33 acres near Sugarland, Texas, on which it plans to build a new storage facility. The location will be the company’s second in the Houston area. Owners Jeff Bailey, Brian Cisarik and Robert Loeb plan to develop a four-story building comprising 123,000 square feet. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2015, officials said in a press release.

The property is near the intersection of the Grand Parkway and Highway 59.

The three San Antonio-based developers have several self-storage projects under development in Texas, including one on Spring Cypress Road in Cypress, about an hour outside of Houston. Construction on the three-story, 110,000-square-foot facility is expected to commence before the end of the year. Houston-based developer Bobby Grover is partnering with the trio on the Houston-area developments, according to the release.

Cisarik and Loeb built their first storage facility, Castle Hills Self Storage, in 2001. That property, along with the partnership’s two others—3009 Self Storage and Austin Highway Self Storage—are being rebranded under the SurePoint name, according to an article in the “San Antonio Business Journal.”

By Amy Campbell and Lindsay Crnkovich

Value Store It Management Inc. knows what it takes to attract quality managers to oversee the company’s 13 facilities: a good salary and an even better benefits package. The Florida-based company treats its 60-plus employees as sales professionals, not facility caretakers.

“The self-storage industry has evolved drastically over the past 10 years. Operators can’t afford to have a ‘clock watcher’ behind the counter,” says Carlos Diaz, vice president.

More self-storage companies, big and small, are offering a competitive salary along with a comprehensive benefits package to their employees. The reason is twofold: to attract a higher-caliber staff and reward them for a job well done.

Providing More

While storage operators are in agreement that an employee-benefits package is a necessity, the programs vary greatly among companies. Many offer medical and dental insurance, with premiums either partially or fully paid by the employer; 401(k) retirement programs, with an employer-matched percentage; paid vacation days; and even health-savings accounts. Plus, most provide “extras” such as performance incentives.

Benefits at Value Store It kick in following 90 days of full-time employment and include three health-insurance options in which the company contributes, paid life insurance, a 401(k) match of 4 percent, and paid vacation/sick leave. The company also offers performance-based bonuses, an employee-of-the-month program and holiday bonuses. It even gives employees turkeys and hams at Thanksgiving. “Qualified managers should expect a comprehensive benefits package with health insurance and performance-based incentives,” Diaz says.

The company also sponsors outings in conjunction with its quarterly manager meetings. “This helps reinforce our corporate culture and build team morale,” Diaz says.

StorageMart, which operates more than 150 facilities in the United States and Canada, understands it “must” provide an attractive employment-benefits package to attract quality employees and reduce turnover, says CEO Mike Burnam. In addition to offering medical and dental insurance, employees can participate in a 401(k) plan in the U.S. and a similar retirement program in Canada. StorageMart also hosts holiday parties and family events, such as barbecues, go-cart racing, batting cages and miniature golf.

Building a Partnership

Employee benefits not only show managers their time is appreciated, they give staff a sense of partnership in the company’s success. Self-storage real estate investment trust Sovran Self Storage Inc., which operates more than 500 properties under the Uncle Bob’s Self-Storage brand, offers a number of benefits to its 1,300 employees, including health and life insurance plans, a 401(k), and vacation and holiday pay, says Jennifer Kozub, director of human resources.

Managers also receive discounts on wireless plans from Verizon, Dell computers and auto, homeowners’ and renters’ insurance.

In addition, they’re eligible for quarterly incentives tied to the company’s “STARS” program, which measures employee metrics and behaviors through company audits. “Dedicated and loyal employees are what make an organization successful,” Kozub says. “To attract and retain high-quality people, we believe it is important to offer not only a comprehensive benefits program but tools to empower them to achieve at their highest potential.”

Sovran’s area managers host events to boost team camaraderie such as lunches, dinners and meetings called “roundtables.” “These events allow our teams to interact, share best practices and build mutually beneficial relationships,” Kozub says. “Our associates appreciate the chance to share their stories and the opportunity to be recognized in front of their peers. The practice builds support within geographic areas and a shared vision for success.”

Small Businesses With Big Rewards

It’s not just larger self-storage operators that are providing comprehensive benefits packages to employees. Many smaller companies have also recognized the value it brings to their business. A1 Mini U-Store-It, which operates five facilities in Canada and has 11 employees, offers dental and medical coverage to managers after six months of employment. The company also provides vendor discounts, bonuses and paid membership to Costco.

“There are typically three types of stakeholders in any organization: staff, principals and customers. If employees are well-treated, they make sure customers and principals remain happy,” says Mat Seguin, director of operations.

A1 Mini also holds customer-appreciation barbecues to reward tenants and employees. “Our managers get to socialize with customers and each other, while I do all the work!” Seguin jokes. “They truly enjoy the opportunity to talk with customers.”

Self-storage managers are no longer “grounds custodians and administrators,” but professional salespeople, so they should be treated as such. “We have to start recognizing that we are not going to attract experienced salespeople with low wages and run-down apartments,” Seguin says.

A company’s strength comes from its employees and their experience, says Barbara Hancock, operations and district manager for Cardinal Self Storage, which operates six facilities in North Carolina and has 13 employees. “We strive to offer all we can to retain good employees,” Hancock says. “We have been fortunate to have had managers stay with us until retirement, some for 12 years.”

Along with health, life insurance and paid vacation for each employee, Cardinal provides a furnished apartment, appliances and paid utilities to all of its onsite managers. “Apartments are two bedrooms and one bath, approximately 1,200 square feet,” Hancock says “All managers get free use of the unit of their choosing.”

Giving benefits and perks to employees isn’t just nice for them, it’s good for business. Employees who feel valued will usually do a better job, which means the business will run smoother and bring in more money. Plus, employees who are satisfied with their job will be more likely to stay, and this stability reduces expensive turnover costs.

But even when benefits can’t be directly tied to cost savings, they can be worthwhile in the long run. “Managers are expected to run these multi-million-dollar facilities professionally and outperform their competitors. Hiring and retaining qualified individuals is more important than saving a few dollars in payroll,” Diaz says.

Lindsay Crnkovich is a senior majoring in journalism at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, and an intern with Inside Self-Storage.

By Kay Miller Temple

A mother’s heart skips a beat when she gets that call from her son, the one that begins with “This is it, this is the one...” But when Nick Sheldon used those words during a phone call to his mother, he wasn’t talking about his future life partner. He was referring to his love at first sight for the razor-wired, fully fenced, 17 acres of desert land near Tucson, Ariz. It was the perfect location for making his dream of owning an RV- and boat-storage facility come true.

Growing Up Self-Storage

From the time Sheldon, now 27, saw the property, to the time he opened Tucson RV Storage last November, only15 days had passed. Though that’s a very short timeline, Sheldon’s history in the storage industry is much longer.

It starts with Sheldon’s parents getting into the business in 1978 as managers for a facility in Michigan. When Sheldon was two, they moved to Arizona to manage another storage property. His parents stayed in self-storage management until their retirement a few years ago.

The family lived on site, and it was a situation that suited Sheldon just fine. It allowed him to do things other kids couldn’t, such as driving a golf cart. He appreciated other things about the arrangement, such as being outdoors and essentially living in a gated community with no neighbors, he says.

As a teenager, he found living at the facility provided another opportunity: a part-time job. "If a big truck drove in, I'd get right over there and ask, 'Hey, do you need help unloading that truck?' and the next thing I knew, I had extra cash in my pocket.”

Although his parents often talked about facility ownership, they decided that because they had kids, they didn't want to take the risk of owning their own business. “But we'd often talk about doing it as a family some day. What always made the most sense was starting with something like an RV storage, since you didn't have to put up four walls and a roof,” Sheldon says.

Serious ‘Obstacle’ Becomes Ownership Catalyst

After high school, Sheldon took some college courses and worked long hours to cover his expenses. “I had five jobs,” he says, including his own moving business, bussing tables, transporting trucks, night security and a part-time job as a self-storage manager. “I was working a lot, and I was working hard making a living. But then an obstacle came my way."

That obstacle was a car accident that caused a severe back injury. During the next six months of recuperation, it became clear Sheldon couldn’t depend on his back to make a living any longer. "I realized I was going to have to depend more on my brain,” he says. “I was going to need a desk job. And I knew exactly the job I could do. That injury was what really made me pursue getting into the storage business. But I wanted to get more experience, so I took manager jobs. I learned customer service. I learned what customers like to see. I realized I could do what it takes. I became very successful with it."

Love at First Sight

Mentally ready to take the ownership risk, Sheldon says he kept looking for just the right physical layout. One day while doing an errand for his dad, he spotted a property with potential in an unincorporated area of Pima County, Ariz., near Tucson. He got out of his truck and looked over the brick wall. Sheldon says he couldn’t believe his eyes. "I saw this facility, an old auto-auction facility,” he says. “I saw a bunch of open land that was already secured. Block-wall perimeter. Razor wire. An electric fence that went all the way around. It was all there. It was amazing."

He immediately filed the required paperwork. Zoning was not an issue, as the auto-auction facility was already approved for vehicle parking. The hardest part was raising the funds to finance his new venture. "No one wants to lend money,” Sheldon says. “I talked to everyone: family, hard-money lenders. I reached out to everyone." Finally, the finances fell into place and Sheldon was on his way to realizing his dream.

In addition to vehicle storage, the property has a 2,000-square-foot warehouse and three office buildings ranging from 500 to 1,200 square feet. The largest office building is near the facility’s entry gate and serves as Tucson RV’s headquarters. The warehouse and smallest office building are leased, and the third office space (800 square feet) is available for lease, Sheldon says.

As the business grows, he plans to offer additional amenities including mobile-detailing services, mechanic services and propane sales.

Being Thankful

Sheldon says he’s grateful for his family’s input and often taps into their self-storage expertise when tough decisions and challenges surface. "I'm lucky,” he says. “My parents have been really supportive. Their experience from 20 years in the business is invaluable. I have an uncle who's been in the business for 15 years, and a cousin who's been in it for about 12 years. I learn a lot from all of them."

Since opening Tucson RV Storage, Sheldon says business has been good. His facility is modernized, with video cameras and keypad access a part of the many security measures. But he believes there’s another factor attracting new business. "My customer service is what brings them in and keeps them coming,” he says. “And word of mouth about my customer service is key.”

But Sheldon adds with a chuckle, “It doesn’t hurt to have painted the wall bright orange to catch a new customer’s eye.”

Kay Miller Temple is a physician and recent graduate from the master’s program at Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. She wrote this article while working as an intern for Inside Self-Storage.

The Inside Self-Storage Store, an e-commerce website providing research and education products for industry professionals, is now offering third-quarter 2014 industry reports produced by the Self Storage Industry Group (SSIG) of commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield. The new products include the latest Self-Storage Performance Quarterly (SSPQ) national report as well as 50 Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) Reports.

The 62-page SSPQ report is priced at $750 and contains income and operational performance data from more than 7,000 facilities in the nation's 50 largest MSAs. It includes data regarding new construction trends, the use and cost of concessions, market rent, occupancy and trend analyses. Operating performance is broken out by region, and MSA data includes the most-improved market, watch list markets, median rental rates and physical occupancy, implied economic occupancy, and more.

SSPQ reports are also available as an annual subscription ($2,500) and are targeted at real estate investment trusts, large self-storage operators, and industry analysts including security analysts, lenders with a large concentration in the self-storage sector, and others who monitor industry-performance metrics.

The MSA reports are available individually for $100 and contain information regarding income, expenses, occupancy, supply, asking rental rates, concessions, and rent per available square foot within a specific MSA. Each one-page report includes an overview of market conditions, self-storage performance index, asking rental rates by unit type, rent per available square foot, physical occupancy, and more.

In addition to SSPQ and MSA reports, the ISS Store offers other Cushman & Wakefield products including monthly National Rental Activity Reports and customized Trade Area Snapshot Reports. Details can be found at www.insideselfstoragestore.com.

Cushman & Wakefield advises and represents clients on all aspects of property occupancy and investment. The firm's Valuation & Advisory Division, which includes the SSIG, is one of the largest real estate valuation and consulting organizations in the world. Founded in 1917, the company has 253 offices in 60 countries and more than 14,000 employees. It offers a complete range of services for all property types including leasing, sales and acquisitions, debt and equity financing, investment banking, corporate services, property management, facilities management, project management, consulting and appraisal.

Conceived as a central hub that allows self-storage owners, operators, developers and investors to obtain cutting-edge information and resources, the ISS Store is owned and operated by ISS, a dynamic services provider that has served the self-storage industry for nearly 25 years. The brand includes ISS magazine, the ISS Expo and Self-Storage Talk, the industry’s largest online community.

Three people were killed and two injured on Thursday when a small plane and a helicopter collided in midair near the Frederick Municipal Airport in Frederick, Md. The helicopter crashed between two rows of self-storage units at Frederick Self Storage on Monroe Ave., about one-tenth of a mile south of where the plane landed in a line of trees.

Maryland State Police identified the deceased as William Jenkins, 47, of Morrison, Colo.; Breandan J. MacFawn, 35, of Cumberland, Md.; and Christopher D. Parsons, 29, of Westminster, Md. All three were in the helicopter, according to investigators.

Scott V. Graeves, 55, of Brookeville, Md., and Gilbert L. Porter, 75, of Sandy Spring, Md., were in the plane and taken by ambulance to Meritus Medical Center in Hagerstown, Md. Graeves was piloting the single-engine airplane, with Porter as his passenger, police said. Both were later released from the hospital with only minor injuries, according to news sources.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said the plane, a 2006 single-engine Cirrus SR22, was en route to the municipal airport to land and the R44 helicopter was involved in a training exercise when the collision occurred.

"I heard the metal hitting metal, and I kind of thought it was a car crash. It was so loud it shook our house," eyewitness Shari Fox, who lives next to the self-storage business, told WBAL TV.

Another witness, Henry Polo of Solid Waste Industries, told “The Frederick News-Post” he was working outside his business when he heard a loud bang above him and saw the plane and helicopter plummet. The helicopter came straight down and crashed about 100 feet from him at the self-storage facility, he said.

Polo told the newspaper he saw two men inside the helicopter as it went down. "The chopper was in so many little pieces; there was fuel everywhere," he said.

The plane was found suspended vertically in the trees with a deployed parachute. Brian Rayner, a senior investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), said the parachute was likely “a ballistic parachute that's mounted to the airframe that's used and deployed to lower the airplane safely when a safe landing can't be completed by the pilot.”

Both aircraft were likely under tower control at the time of the collision, he said. The FAA and NTSB will continue to investigate the incident.

Inside Self-Storage (ISS) has released its 2014 International Digital Issue, which includes in-depth articles about the growth, challenges and operation of self-storage businesses in Asia, Africa, Australia, Canada, Europe, North America and South America. Written for facility owners, managers and investors, the articles include information about new development and conversions, financing, operations, obstacles, customer dynamics, and more. Covered topics include: 

• An overview of industry growth across the world
• Obstacles faced by developers in Latin America
• Growth potential in the U.K. market
• The expansion of Less Mess Storage in Europe
• Australia’s first real estate investment trust
• Storage needs and challenges in Hong Kong
• The Box approach in the United Arab Emirates
• Extra Space Asia’s recent acquisitions
• An update from the Canadian Self Storage Association

 The publication is available for free download at www.insideselfstorage.com/digital-issues. 

For nearly 25 years, ISS has provided informational resources for the self-storage industry. Its educational offerings include ISS magazine, the annual ISS Expo, an extensive website, the ISS Store, and Self-Storage Talk, the industry’s largest online community.

WDP Glendale Storage purchased West Glendale Self Storage in Glendale, Ariz., from Ivicevic Self Storage LLC for $4.9 million. It will be managed by US Storage Centers, which owns, operates or manages more than 75 self-storage facilities in 10 states.

The facility encompasses 79,544 square feet of storage space. It includes 788 units, 272 RV-parking spaces and eight contractor lots. It was 58 percent occupied at the time of sale, according to a press release from Empire Commercial Real Estate, which brokered the off-market transaction. The property sold at a capitalization rate of 5.02 percent, and the transaction closed in mid-October.

Norman Herd, a partner with Empire Commercial, represented the buyer and seller in the deal. The Phoenix-based company offers brokerage services for a variety of commercial investment properties including self-storage, retail, medical office and multi-family, and lender-owned real estate and special assets.

Update 10/24/14 – Safeguard Self Storage has purchased another land parcel in Chicago that will be home to its 14th self-storage facility in the metropolitan area. The property on West 95th Street is in the Beverly neighborhood. The facility will comprise 58,000 square feet in 790 storage units.

Facility features will include climate control, a drive-up loading area, computerized gate access and video cameras. The facade will be designed to blend into the surrounding neighborhood, company officials said in a press release.

When completed, the asset at 1909 W. 95th St. will be Safeguard’s 74th location.

---

10/10/14 – Safeguard Self Storage, which operates about 70 facilities in six states, recently purchased a land parcel on North Clybourn Avenue in Chicago that will be home to its 13th location in the Windy City. The company is actively expanding its presence in the area, with two other facilities currently under construction.

“The Chicago area is a great market for Safeguard and will provide the company with the opportunity to increase its critical mass in this city,” said Allan Sweet, CEO. “We consider our growth in Chicago as an important next step for the company.”

The Clybourn Avenue property will house a 68,000-square-foot facility offering 880 storage units. The site will include climate control, a drive-up loading area, computerized gate access and video cameras. The facade will be designed to blend into the surrounding neighborhood, company officials said in a press release.

“This store, similar to all our Chicago facilities, will fill a real need in this dense urban area of the city,” said Ken Finlay, senior vice president of operations.

The two facilities under construction are in the neighborhoods of Uptown and West Rogers Park. Both properties are near downtown. The facility at 6014 California St. will be comprised of 51,775 square feet in 717 storage units. Officials previously said they expected the Uptown facility on North Sheridan Road to be larger.

All three sites are expected to open in 2015, according to Jim Goonan, senior vice president of development.

Founded in 1989 and headquartered in Atlanta, Safeguard Self Storage operates facilities in Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. The company is owned and operated by Morgan Stanley’s Prime Property Fund.

CPA:18 – Global, an affiliate of global net-lease real estate investment trust (REIT) W. P. Carey Inc., has acquired five self-storage facilities in California, Florida, Hawaii, South Carolina and Texas for a combined purchase price of $32 million. The properties comprise more than 353,000 square feet in 2,895 units and 48 vehicle-storage spaces. The acquisitions are:

• Palm Desert, Calif.—93,098 net rentable square feet in 798 units
• Miami, Fla.—57,240 net rentable square feet in 598 units
• Kailua-Kona, Hawaii—39,500 net rentable square feet in 366 units
• Columbia, S.C.—63,121 net rentable square feet in 442 units and 48 RV-parking spaces
• Corpus Christi, Texas—100,100 net rentable square feet in 641 units

All five assets will be managed by Extra Space Storage Inc.

CPA:18 – Global is a publicly held, non-traded REIT managed by W. P. Carey.

"All five acquisitions represent attractive investment opportunities for CPA:18 – Global's portfolio and show opportunities for growth, revenue enhancement and bottom-line improvement,” said Liz Raun Schlesinger, managing director for W. P. Carey. “We believe that our existing management structure in these areas will enable us to achieve operational synergies that will accrue to the benefit of our investors over time. We are already working with Extra Space Storage in these markets and believe that their ability to manage these assets will, in conjunction with our own storage expertise, enhance their long-term value."

W. P. Carey's owned and managed self-storage portfolio now comprises 158 facilities totaling 9.6 million net rentable square feet. “W. P. Carey first entered the self-storage space in 2004 because the sector demonstrated the same solid, long-term income and cash-flow generating characteristics as the long-term net-leased assets in which we had invested for decades,” added Anne Coolidge Taylor, managing director for W. P. Carey. “While in the current low interest-rate environment, competition for the attractive risk-adjusted returns provided by self-storage assets remains intense. The combination of our access to capital, depth of capabilities, and ability to react to and quickly execute opportunities of all sizes allows us to continue to source and secure long-term investment opportunities in the sector."

New York-based W. P. Carey is an investment-management company that oversees a global investment portfolio. It manages a series of non-traded REITs with assets under management of approximately $8.2 billion. The company’s enterprise value is approximately $9.9 billion. It provides companies worldwide with long-term sale leaseback and build-to-suit financing, and engages in other types of real estate-related investment.