By Pamela Alton

Spring and summer always seem to be the busiest time of year in the self-storage industry. People are changing jobs, moving to new homes, or relocating to new cities or states. College students are going home for the summer, and business need places to store their more seasonal items. Now’s the time to get your facility ready for this surge in activity. Freshen it up and outshine your competition! Here are some inexpensive yet important ways to improve your profitability.

Curb Appeal

You know the old saying, “You only have one chance to make a good impression!” How do you think your facility looks to prospective tenants as they pull up to your gate and office? Go outside and approach your facility with a fresh set of eyes. Take a good look at what someone sees for the first time when visiting to your site. Take a notepad while doing your walk-around so you can keep track of everything you see.

Let’s start with the signage. Is it clean, well-lit and attractive? Does it need new lettering or is it time to replace the whole thing? Do you have an American flag, or other brightly colored flags or banners? If so, how often do you change, rotate or replace them? Winter can take its toll on these items, so they need to be replaced regularly. Don’t forget new banners for summer specials! The cost is minimal compared to the return they bring.

Next, let’s look at the landscaping. Does it give the best impression? Does the lawn need mowing, fertilizing or weeding? Is it time to add or replace bushes, small trees or flower beds? Pots containing annual flowers not only look pretty but can add a pop of color to an otherwise industrial façade. Decorative rock or bark can really clean up planted areas, are cost-effective and provide a sharp new look. If you outsource your landscaping, is the company doing a good job or is it time to get bids for a new one?

Don’t forget to repaint your handicapped spaces, reline other parking spaces, and paint any yellow or red poles and curbs in front of your office. Paint is inexpensive and will dress up your entry, making it look fresh and clean.

The Office

Now let’s move into the office, starting with the windows and doors. Winter means snow and rain in many parts of the country, which can make your entry look dirty. Now's the time to hose off the front and clean your glass. If your front door isn't glass, it may need repainting. You may also need to replace the office and gate signs.

If you have room, add a new park bench out front for people to enjoy while others are in the office. Put a cigarette-butt disposal beside it along with a barrel full of colorful flowers. You'd be surprised how something that simple can brighten up an area and add to your curb appeal.

Once you’ve finished this exterior clean-up, step inside the office. How’s that impression? Consider:

• Does it smell clean and fresh?
• Are the floors, carpeting and office furnishings clean and in good condition?
• Does the flooring need to be cleaned and waxed?
• Do the rubber entry mats need to be cleaned or replaced?
• Are your blinds dusty or have broken slats?
• Is it time to repaint the office?
• Is it well-lit, or do you need to replace the bulbs?
• Is the wall art current, or does it look like it belongs in the Bates Motel?
• Is it time to toss that old silk Ficus plant in the dumpster?
• Are your office signs faded, dirty or drab?
• Is the counter uncluttered, clean and polished and in good repair?
• Do you have tenant-insurance brochures displayed in a nice stand or neat pile?
• Do the office chairs need to be replaced?
• Is it time to purge old files? If so, call in a company that specializes in document shredding.
• Have the lien laws in your state changed? When was the last time you updated your leases, addendums or facility forms?
• Do you need to update your brochures and website with summer specials or discounts, or social media information?
• Are your retail items displayed neatly with clear pricing?
• Is it time to order new retail items or displays?
• Finally, do your managers need new shirts and name tags?

Sales Refresher

Now is also a great time to discuss and refresh your sales techniques. How are your phone presentations, customer-service skills and collection efforts? Do you or other staff members need additional training?

If you don’t have a designated person to provide training, there are several companies that offer it. Also consider attending an industry tradeshow or look for online resources. Old habits are hard to be break. However, with a little effort and a refresher course, you can boost the income at your facility!

Facility Maintenance

Again, walk around your property and look at it through the eyes of a customer. Do this during the day and at night so you can view the lighting and signage. Are all the lights working and bright?

Consider deferred maintenance items. Is it time to resurface or patch the asphalt? Are the exterior doors clean? Do all units have a tenant lock or, if vacant, a company lock? Are there overlocks on all delinquent units or any that should be removed?

Look at your perimeter. Are there any places that can be breached? How are the buildings, gutters and downspouts? Are they banged up? Are all the buildings visibly marked so a tenant can easily find the right one, even at night?

Now enter the hallways. Are they free of debris, cobwebs, trash, etc.? Are all the doors clean and dust-free? Open all the vacant units. Are they clean and ready to rent? Is the lighting bright and exit signs lit and easy to read? Are carts easily accessible? Are the stairwells clean?

Don’t forget about the company units and maintenance room. Are they orderly so tools are easy to find? Is it time to replace brooms, dust pans, cleaning supplies and so on? Do you need to order items for the fall and winter months?

Your facility needn't be state-of-the-art facility to be well-maintained and clean. Most improvements are inexpensive, and money spent now will provide increased income, tenant retention and referrals down the road. Having great curb appeal and maintenance, as well as a knowledgeable and helpful staff, will make your spring/summer busy season a profitable one.

Pamela Alton is the owner of Mini-Management Services, a nationwide manager-placement service that also offers audits and inspections, training, feasibility studies, and due-diligence inspections. To reach her, call 321.890.2245; e-mail [email protected].

Lakewood Ranch Xpress Storage LLC purchased 3 acres of land in East Manatee, Fla., for $1.4 million. The land at 10415 Portal Crossing is just off State Route 64 and Upper Manatee River Road. It was valued at $665,082 in 2013, according to the Manatee County Property Appraiser. The seller, Portal Crossing RT 64 LLC, provided a $225,000 mortgage for the transaction, according to the source.

Lakewood Ranch Xpress Storage is registered to Steve Wilson, managing partner of Hide-Away Storage. Wilson opened the first Hide-Away Storage in Bradenton, Fla., in 1977. He’s a former president of the national Self Storage Association and was inducted into its hall of fame in 2010.

Headquartered in Sarasota, Hide-Away Storage owns 11 facilities in Southwest Florida. The company opened its first Xpress Storage in Sarasota, Fla., in 2010, and a second one in Parrish, Fla., in 2013.

The William Warren Group (WWG), a privately held real estate company that operates the StorQuest Self Storage brand, has acquired a 15-property portfolio in the western states for $64 million. The portfolio comprises 861,367 rentable square feet of storage space and 6,800 units. It includes facilities in Arizona, California, Colorado and Texas, all of which will be rebranded under the StorQuest name.

In the transaction, Marc Boorstein and Jeff Jacobson of MJ Partners Self Storage Group, in conjunction with Watson Self Storage, represented the buyer and the seller, a family company based in Woodland Hills, Calif. The three-phase closing accommodated a like-kind property exchange under the Internal Revenue Code section 1031 tax-deferred exchange.

Headquartered in Chicago, MJ Partners is a full-service real estate brokerage and investment banking company specializing in commercial real estate, mortgage banking and consulting services. The company's clients include major financial institutions, private equity funds, REITs, opportunity funds, insurance companies, pension-fund advisors, corporations, private developers and entrepreneurial businesses.

Founded in 1994 and based in Santa Monica, Calif., WWG is a privately held real estate company that develops, acquires and operates self-storage facilities in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, South Carolina and Texas. It operates more than 100 self-storage properties.

 

 

Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, a commercial property investment firm prominent in the self-storage industry, has released a series of semiannual reports covering 42 major markets across the United States. Produced by the firm’s National Self-Storage Group and released through its Research Services arm, the local reports offer market trends on employment, population, unit vacancy and asking rental rates.

The two-page reports also provide an overview of state rentable square feet per capita and regional median price and cap-rate trends. Recent self-storage property sales in each report’s region of coverage are also highlighted.

The Self-Storage Research Semiannual Reports will be published twice each year and may be downloaded for free by users who register with the company’s website.

Marcus & Millichap produces more than 2,000 research products each year, officials said. The Research Services department offers a range of publications, from national economic perspectives to property type-specific analyses at the market level. A new company website enables users to search for reports by multi-family and commercial property type, as well as by location and keyword.

Marcus & Millichap has more than 1,300 investment professionals in offices throughout the United States and Canada. The company closed more than 6,600 transactions last year with a value of approximately $24 billion.

OpenTech Alliance Inc., a Phoenix-based provider of self-serve kiosks, call-center services and other technology for the self-storage industry, has added a second call center to better serve customers in the Eastern time zone and is now offering 24-hour service. The company has spent a year preparing the new call center in Dayton, Ohio, which currently staffs 10 full-time phone agents, officials said in a press release.

The company is also considering the addition of remote call centers overseas to serve international customers. “Our 24/7 strategy is linked with our global vision to offer call-center services in other regions of the world,” said Robert Chiti, president and CEO. “As our customers expand the footprint of their portfolios, we want to be there to support them in the regions they are doing business, so we anticipate we will open more remote call centers outside the U.S. in the future."

OpenTech has invested in cloud-based technology to enable some phone agents to work from home and leverage its infrastructure to expand globally, Chiti said.

OpenTech provides several models of INSOMNIAC self-serve kiosks as well as a range of self-storage rental solutions including the INSOMNIAC Live! Call Center, INSOMNIAC Online Web and mobile applications, LiveAgent! software products, and the INSOMNIAC ILock Security System, all available through the company's Self-Storage Cloud.

MJ Partners Real Estate Services has released a 24-page report highlighting key performance metrics from the first-quarter 2014 financial results issued by the four publicly traded U.S.-based self-storage real estate investment trusts (REITs)—CubeSmart, Extra Space Storage Inc., Public Storage Inc. and Sovran Self Storage Inc.

The report offers a market overview, including implied cap rates and investment activity for all four REITs, as well as chart data and side-by-side comparisons on self-storage facility performance. It also contains information from analysts on macroeconomic trends impacting the storage industry.

All four REITs reported healthy numbers, with each reporting occupancy levels during the first quarter of at least 88.9 percent. Public Storage achieved the highest occupancy, 92.6 percent, during the quarter, while CubeSmart showed the largest year-over-year occupancy gain, improving from 85.6 percent to 89.5 percent.

Sovran, which operates the Uncle Bob’s Self Storage brand, tallied the largest year-over-year revenue gain for the first quarter, with an increase of 8.3 percent. Same-store net operating income was also up for all four REITs during the quarter, with Extra Space having the largest gain at 9.4 percent, just ahead of Sovran, which tallied a 9.3 percent improvement from the same period last year.

Public Storage garnered the largest rent per square foot from same-store locations at $14.41, followed by Extra Space ($14.09), CubeSmart ($13.54) and Sovran ($11.16).

The PDF report can be downloaded for free from the MJ Partners website. Inside Self-Storage recently published a summary of first-quarter financial results for all four REITs.

Headquartered in Chicago, MJ Partners is a full-service real estate brokerage and investment banking company specializing in commercial real estate, mortgage banking and consulting services. The company's clients include major financial institutions, private equity funds, REITs, opportunity funds, insurance companies, pension-fund advisors, corporations, private developers and entrepreneurial businesses.

The Self Storage Association of the United Kingdom (SSA-UK) has released its eighth annual survey report providing industry data on average rents, occupancy, facility types and other information. Produced by Deloitte Real Estate, the report surveyed 79 self-storage operators representing 403 U.K. facilities.

Despite the introduction of a 20 percent value-added tax (VAT) imposed by the government in October 2012, the report estimates the U.K. self-storage market reached £385 million in revenue in 2013, with 79 percent of respondents expecting to achieve improved profit this year.

Average occupancy was 71 percent, a 3 percent improvement over 2012 figures. Association officials attributed the gain to fewer new facilities opening in 2013 and operators concentrating on filling their existing buildings. Increased consumer demand has spurred some operators to plan portfolio expansions, with much of the new growth expected in areas outside of London, SSA-UK officials said.

“Figures are encouraging, as operators are seeing increased occupancy; although to some degree, this has been offset by slightly lower income levels,” said Rennie Schafer, CEO of SSA-UK. “Considering that 20 percent VAT was applied to the rent of self-storage units 18 months ago, the industry has shown remarkable resilience. Life-changing moments like moving home and starting families do not stop during a recession, and this contributes to the 60 percent of space that is rented by the private customer.”

Although a majority of rentable space is used by residential customers, overall use by consumers remains low, with just 3 percent of the public currently using self-storage, according to data from more than 2,000 adults surveyed by YouGov PLC, which is also contained in the report. Of those surveyed, 38 percent said they know “a reasonable amount” about self-storage, and 8 percent said they are considering using services.

The report estimates there are 975 self-storage facilities among 420 operators in the U.K., although 339 locations are held by the region’s 10 largest operators. The properties comprise 34.4 million square feet of rentable space, accounting for about 41 percent of the available self-storage in Europe, SSA-UK officials said. London continues to dominate the market with 8.5 million square feet of space, followed by Manchester, England, with 536,000 square feet.

Business customers account for 40 percent of rented storage space, with many choosing flexible terms offered by operators for office space.

Analysts believe the U.K. self-storage market is poised for growth, but a lack of available land will challenge operators to meet future demand. “With occupancy rising and the sector continuing to show resilience despite the introduction of VAT, we are seeing an optimistic outlook from both operators and investors,” said Ollie Saunders, head of self-storage at Deloitte Real Estate. “There are new stores planned, but the shortage of available land and the potential to redevelop self-storage facilities for alternative uses will mean that supply is likely to not be able to meet the future demand. We have also seen a resurgence in corporate activity with a number of important transactions, as operators start to acquire existing stores to expand—both in the U.K. and Europe.”

A PDF copy of the 32-page “Self Storage UK Annual Survey” report is available for free download from the SSA-UK website.

Deloitte Real Estate is a full-service real estate firm offering traditional property services and financial and business consulting.

The SSA-UK is the trade association for the self-storage industry in the United Kingdom. Its mission is to support member operators and vendors, promote best business practices, and raise public awareness.

Update 5/6/14 – Authorities in New Zealand have determined Kiwi Self Storage met all building-code requirements and the company is not at fault for the April 4 arson fire. Peter Dunne, the internal affairs minister, said he will not formally investigate the fire, despite a written plea from the facility’s tenants.

Annette King, a Parliament member who represents the suburb Rongotai, penned a letter to Dunne on behalf of the tenants, encouraging him to launch an investigation. In addition, tenants wrote to the company’s directors on Monday expressing their dissatisfaction with how the business handled the incident. They also requested an apology and compensation.

Peter Fowler, a storage tenant and spokesperson for the group, told the source Kiwi Self Storage was built to minimum standards, making it easier for the fire to spread quickly. He also said he believes the tenants have a solid case for legal action, as the company breached its duty of care to its customers.

Kiwi Self Storage Director Andrew Fraser said the facility met all building-code requirements and completed regular compliance checks and, therefore, did not breach its duty of care.

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Update 4/15/14 – Police in Wellington, New Zealand, have arrested a man in connection with the April 4 fire at Kiwi Self Storage. The 34-year-old man, whose name has not been released to the public, appeared in a Wellington District Court today on a charge of arson, according to several news sources. Through his attorney, Douglas Ewen, the man entered a plea of not guilty and elected trial by jury. Ewen told the court the defendant would not seek bail and asked to be taken directly to Rimutaka Prison in Upper Hut, New Zealand.

Judge Kevin Glubb granted the man interim suppression of his name and the reason behind the request. While in court, the man pleaded guilty to an unrelated charge of driving on a suspended license. The judge continued the suspension for an additional nine months and sentenced the defendant to one month in prison. It was the man’s ninth driving suspension, according to news reports. His next court date is June 19.

Police made the arrest on Monday after serving a search warrant at an address in Johnsonville, a suburb of Wellington. Investigators also seized a vehicle they believe is relevant to the case, according to sources. The investigation is ongoing and police are now asking for anyone who may have seen a light-blue, 1994 Daihatsu Charade in Johnsonville or Kilbirnie between midnight and 1 a.m. on April 4 to contact them.

Victims of the fire have flooded media outlets with claims that they’ve been treated unfairly and given short windows to examine and collect what remains of their belongings, according to several news reports. The self-storage tenants told reporters they’ve been given little information since the fire and are planning a public meeting on Wednesday to voice their concerns. Conversely, representatives of the self-storage facility said they’ve been forthcoming with information and have been in regular contact with their tenants. Kiwi Self Storage Director Andrew Fraser told media sources nearly all 750 customers affected by the fire were contacted by phone or e-mail the day it happened. In addition, the company’s website is updated regularly with information for tenants and includes an FAQ page. Kiwi also set up a call center to handle queries.

On Saturday, the company posted a statement on its website requesting customers in a specific block to visit the facility and remove items by 5 p.m. on Monday. Anything left behind would be moved “aside” to enable access to other units. Fraser told news sources that anyone given a deadline of Monday had visited the facility over the weekend. In addition, rental payments have been suspended and refunds will likely be issued, according to sources.

In addition to other items lost in the blaze, music records belonging to Wellington DJ Danny Lemon were destroyed. Lemmon sifted through the charred remains of his unit over the weekend, hoping to find anything from his 8,500-record collection still intact. Lemon, founder of the entertainment group Roots Foundation Sound System, told reporters his collection is worth an estimated $100,000 and includes boxes of 7-inch singles and original pressings from Wackie's, an American independent record label. The local DJ is one of dozens of tenants without insurance to cover their losses. Lemon reports he has received outreach from people around the world offering to help replace his collection.

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Updated 4/11/14 – A victim of Kiwi Self-Storage’s massive fire has launched a support group to help tenants without insurance raise money to cover their losses. Artist Megan Ransom, a resident of Wellington, started a Facebook group Kiwi Inferno Storage to explore legal avenues available to victims and seek compensation.

Ransom’s bronze sculpting tools and household items were destroyed in the fire. Upon inspecting her second-floor unit on Thursday, she told the source the only recognizable item was the remnants of a washing machine. The contents of the unit were worth an estimated $20,000 to $50,000, she said. Ransom, who doesn’t have insurance to cover the loss, said her career has “basically stopped.”

Police released surveillance video on Wednesday of a man carrying a 25-litre tank into the building prior to the explosion.

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Update 4/9/14 – Investigators now believe the fire that burned for nearly 24 hours at Kiwi Self Storage was likely ignited by an accelerant that led to an explosion. Police are seeking the public’s help in identifying a man who appears on the facility’s surveillance video accessing a unit in the building where the fire started.

Police told reporters at the scene today that camera footage shows the man entering the facility’s security gate and accessing a unit just after midnight on Friday. In the video, he’s wearing a black sweatshirt under a white t-shirt and a white and yellow cap. Authorities said the man appeared to have a large canister of petrol. In addition, police have interviewed the tenant renting the unit where the fire began and believe his space may have been targeted, according to the source.

The video footage shows the suspect did not force his way through the security gate. Neither the start of the fire, nor the explosion were recorded, according to the source.

Kiwi Self Storage will reopen the facility on Thursday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., to tenants with units is Blocks A, C, D and most of E, according to the company website. Access will be unlimited for customers who do not bring a vehicle inside the facility. Those with vehicles will have limited access and allowed on the premises on a first-come, first-served basis. Appointments are not being accepted at this time.

Company representatives began contacting tenants with units on the upper level of Block B on Wednesday. Customers can call the facility and make an appointment to have their belongings removed from their unit. 

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Update 4/8/14 – Although still under investigation, the fire at Kiwi Self Storage was likely arson, police and fire investigators have reported. Firefighters contained the blaze by Friday evening, but it wasn’t completely extinguished until Saturday morning, according to facility website.

Units on the second level of Block B containing the numbers 200, 300, 1000, 1100 and 1200 suffered the most damage. Units on the first floor had water and other damage. The facility remains closed to all tenants to allow engineering firms to make it safe for entry, according to facility officials. Security personnel continue to patrol the site.

On Monday, facility representatives began preparing to remove belongings from the 170 units on the ground floor of the destroyed building. Customers were encourage to make an appointment so they can be present during the process. The belongings were released into their care, or customers could request them to be transported to a new location, including storage units at other facilities, according to the Kiwi website. The storage operator assisted in the transportation and said customers would not incur charges for removal assistance, transportation or storage of their belongings for the first month at an alternative location.

As of Tuesday, the belongings for 20 customers were removed from the ground-floor units. Contractors continue to work on making the upper level safe and are placing tarpaulins over exposed areas. Removal of property from the upper floor might begin later this week, company officials said. Kiwi hopes to reopen the whole facility on Thursday, but will limit the number and duration of visitors.

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A huge fire at Kiwi Self Storage in Kilbirnie, Wellington, New Zealand, on Friday morning destroyed movie memorabilia belonging to “Lord of the Rings” cinematographer Alex Funke as well as political documents owned by Wellington Regional Council Chairperson Fran Wilde. Fire crews were called to 165 Rongotai Road at 12:45 a.m. after a two-story, 750-unit building became engulfed in flames. The other four buildings on the property were largely undamaged, according to news reports.

Funke told sources his top-floor unit contained two Oscar Academy Awards as well as his British Academy of Film and Television Arts Award and personal camera equipment. He said the loss is “very upsetting,” though he believes his Oscars can be replaced. He received the awards for “Best Visual Effects” on “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” in 2003 and “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” in 2004. He also received a Special Achievement Award in 1991 for “Total Recall.”

It took more than 30 firefighters several hours to get the five-alarm blaze under control, according to several news sources. A digger was used to open one end of the building, allowing the heat to dissipate and enabling firefighters to reach the interior, according to Paul Smith, assistant district area commander. This allowed fire crews to tackle the units one at time. The firefighters will soon turn their attention to tamping down hot spots to ensure the fire doesn’t reignite. No one was seriously injured, but one firefighter did suffer mild heat stress.

The self-storage facility, which is next to the Kilbirnie Fire Station, has no sprinkler systems in its buildings. Kiwi Self Storage Director Andrew Fraser told the source installing sprinklers is not an industry standard, but the company will now consider them for its other properties.

Kiwi Self Storage has two facilities in Wellington, Australia, and another three in Auckland, New Zealand. The company has posted detailed information about the fire on its website to keep customers apprised. According to the most recent update, Kiwi Self Storage has arranged for security to patrol the site. For now, the facility is closed and will be subject to fire and police investigations. Officials will provide more information regarding the extent of damage as it becomes available.

 

Uncle Bob’s Self Storage is sponsoring an “Address Your Mess” contest through social media, encouraging consumers to share their personal organization needs. The grand prize is a three-day, two-night stay at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Miami.

To enter, contestants need to submit a digital photo or short video of a messy room in their home, apartment or dorm room to unclebobs.com/mess. Site visitors are invited to vote for the photo or video depicting the messiest, most cluttered room—the space most desperately in need of organization assistance. Entrants are encouraged to share links to their photo or video with family and friends on Facebook, Twitter and other social networks to encourage voting. Photos and video entries will be accepted through June 29. One entry is allowed per contestant.

Once each week throughout the eight-week contest, the entrant whose photo or video earns the most votes will receive a prize package that includes Uncle Bob’s jackets, t-shirts and other merchandise. After the weekly winners are selected, Uncle Bob’s will choose one of the finalists as the grand-prize winner on June 30. The prize includes one deluxe room, two half-day spa treatments and round-trip airfare for two to Miami. The winner will also receive a free session with a professional organizer to help clean and declutter his living space.

Uncle Bob’s Self Storage is owned by Sovran Self Storage Inc., a real estate investment trust that acquires and manages self-storage facilities. The company operates more than 450 facilities in 25 states.