Police in Sumner, Wash., are asking the public to help identify a vehicle that was possibly involved in a burglary at a self-storage facility.

Surveillance video at Western Self Storage, 1405 E. Valley Highway, captured an image of a blue, two-door truck leaving the facility July 2. The manager discovered holes cut in the chain-link fence surrounding the facility and three storage units appeared to be broken into.

Other evidence of a break-in include a fishing reel found outside the fence, a pair of bolt cutters discovered near the fence, a cut padlock and a missing outboard kicker motor from a stored boat. Police are working with tenants to determine if anything else is missing.

This month Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, one of the nations largest commercial investment-services firms, is offering a free series of mid-year webcasts providing a comprehensive update and outlook for the apartment, retail, office and industrial property sectors. The webcasts can be watched live or on demand through MarcusMillichap.com. The webinar schedule is:

• Retail Webcast, July 12, 2011, 10:30 a.m. Pacific
• Apartment Webcast, July 19, 10:30 a.m. Pacific
• Office and Industrial Webcast, July 26, 10:30 a.m. Pacific

The webcasts will include speaker presentations followed by an interactive question and answer session. Topics will include the seriousness of the current economic slowdown, prospects for occupancy and rent growth in 2011-2012, interest rates, and an outlook for pricing, cap rates and investment opportunities. The presenters are:

• William E. Hughes, managing director, Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp.
• Hessam Nadji, managing director, Marcus & Millichap
• Alan L. Pontius, managing director, National Office and Industrial Properties Group
• Bill Rose, national director, National Retail Group

Registration details can be found at www.marcusmillichap.com/webcasts. Questions can be directed to [email protected] or 925.953.1735.

Founded in 1971, Marcus & Millichap is one of the nations largest firms specializing in commercial real estate investment services. With more than 1,200 real estate specialists in 70-plus offices, the company closed 4,302 transactions in 2010. Marcus & Millichap includes a National Self Storage Group that specializes in self-storage real estate transactions.

Self-storage real estate investment trusts (REITs) continue to lead the U.S. REIT market, making good gains during the first half of 2011, according to the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (NAREIT).

Self storage REITs provided a total return of 15.05 percent during the first two quarters of 2011.  Overall, U.S. REITs continued to outperform the broader equity market in the second quarter and the first half of 2011.

The total return of the FTSE NAREIT All REITs Index was up 2.94 percent in the second quarter and the total return of the FTSE NAREIT All Equity REITs Index was up 2.9 percent in the quarter compared to 0.10 percent for the S&P 500.

FTSE is an independent company jointly owned by The Financial Times and the London Stock Exchange. The Index Series presents investors with a comprehensive family of real estate investment trust performance indexes spanning the commercial real estate space across the U.S. economy, offering exposure to all investment and property sectors.

On a 12 month basis ending June 30, 2011, the FTSE NAREIT All REITs Index was up 32.86 percent and the FTSE NAREIT All Equity REITs Index was up 34.09 percent compared to the S&P 500s 30.69 percent gain.

The U.S. REIT industrys total equity market capitalization stood at $455 billion at June 30, 2011, up 17 percent from $389 billion at Dec.31, 2010. The average daily dollar trading volume was $4.6 billion in June compared with $3.4 billion in Dec. 2010.

Child Protective Services (CPS) has taken custody of six children found living with their parents in a self-storage unit in Houston.

The Leonard family had been living in a 10,000-square-foot air-conditioned unit for the past five years. The family has outfitted the unit with beds, a bath tub, a microwave and two computers. It does not have running water, which was one of the reasons CPS took custody of the children. The Leonards access water via a five-gallon drum.  

According to Charlomane Leonard, the facility owner, Toby Hill, knew the family was living in the facility unit. All six children have been placed with family relatives. A hearing on Aug. 16 will determine the next step.

Two city officials in Idaho have reversed their stance on the states purchase of a self-storage facility last year.

A state-managed endowment trust overseen by the Department of Land paid $2.7 million in August 2010 to buy the 400-plus-unit Affordable Self Storage in a Boise suburb. The revenue from the business was earmarked to benefit Idaho public schools and other state institutions.

Now, Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter and Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna said they made a bad call. Lunas spokeswoman recently said the superintendent no longer supports the state competing with the private sector. She also said hes disappointed in his vote and will work with the Land Board to explore selling the self-storage facility

The controversial purchase has been under fire by local business owners and self-storage professionals who questioned if a state-run commercial business could operate fairly.

The other three Land Board members who oversee the endowment have stuck to their decision to purchase the facility. Affordable Self Storage is operated by a private contractor.

EPO Center, a 31,300-square-foot self-storage and office property in Port Orchard, Wash., recently sold for $1.43 million. Built in 1971, the center originally consisted of three office buildings totaling 18,230 net rentable square feet. In 2002, a self-storage facility was built on 1.03 acres in the rear of the property, consisting of 13,070 net rentable square feet and 67 units.

As of March 1, the office building was 63.5 percent physically occupied and the storage facility was 77.6 percent occupied. At those rates, the assets were 10 percent to 15 percent less occupied than the average office and self-storage properties in Port Orchard. The facility has excellent visibility along Southeast Mile Hill Drive with a traffic count that exceeds 18,000 vehicles per day. The self-storage rents at the site are 15 percent to 25 percent lower than those of its closest competitor.

Based on the current net operating income, the new buyer would immediately achieve 10 percent cash-on-cash return, with the opportunity to lease the vacant office and storage spaces.

The seller, a private investor, was represented by Joel Deis and Christopher R Secreto, senior self-storage investment specialists in the Seattle office of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services. Because the asset was free and clear, the seller was willing to provide interest-only financing for 120 months. The rate for the first 30 months was to be 5 percent and would increase 50 basis points every 30 months through the end of the term.

Founded in 1971, Marcus & Millichap is one of the nations largest firms specializing in commercial real estate investment services. With more than 1,200 real estate specialists in 70-plus offices, the company closed 4,302 transactions in 2010. Marcus & Millichap includes a National Self Storage Group that specializes in self-storage real estate transactions.

On July 23, AERC Recycling Solutions is hosting two free electronics-recycling collection events at Access Self Storage locations in Lawrenceville and Manalapan, N.J. The free events are open to local residents and small-business owners that have small quantities of electronics to recycle. They will take place 9 a.m. to noon in Manalapan and 1 to 4 p.m. in Lawrenceville.

Acceptable recyclables include printers, scanners, CPUs, laptops, internal computer components, telephones, telecommunication equipment, cameras, radios, modems, pagers, VCRs, DVD players, hand-held games, computer accessories and peripherals, cables, and cords. A complete list of acceptable materials can be found at www.com-cycle.com.

AERC provides a solution for end-of-life electronics by adhering to a zero waste to landfill policy on all accepted electronics and completely destroying any data contained on accepted data-storage devices such as hard drives. All accepted items are processed at AERCs facility in Allentown, Pa. This facility is certified by the National Association for Information Destruction and is in the process of obtaining R2/RIOS Certification, expecting to be listed as a Certified Electronics Recycler in 2011.

All AERC facilities have weekly drop-off hours. Residents in California, Florida, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Texas are welcome to participate. In New Jersey, AERC has also developed a growing network of partnering drop-off locations including facilities such as Access Self Storage.

Access Self Storage has 19 locations in New Jersey and Metro New York.

Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services has promoted Michael A. Mele to first vice president of investments, one of the highest levels of recognition the firm awards to its investment specialists. It represents excellence in the development and servicing of long-term client relationships, according to Bryn Merrey, vice president and regional manager of the firms Tampa, Fla. office.

Mele joined the firm in May 1999 and was promoted to senior associate in May 2002. He was named vice president of investments in January 2008. He has received nine sales-recognition awards from Marcus & Millichap.

Mele specializes in the sale of self-storage investment real estate. He is a senior director of the firms National Self-Storage Group and was the firms No.1 self-storage agent in 2010 and 2008.

Founded in 1971, Marcus & Millichap is one of the nations largest firms specializing in commercial real estate investment services. With more than 1,200 real estate specialists in 70-plus offices, the company closed 4,302 transactions in 2010. Marcus & Millichap includes a National Self Storage Group that specializes in self-storage real estate transactions.

East End Mini Storage in Homer, Alaska, hosted an event July 1 for Bikes Rock Homer, an organization that restores used bicycles and gives them away to needy children and adults. The organization called the event the "fix 'em party" to inspire those with bike-repair knowledge and tools to come spend the day making used bikes rideable.

The event featured a barbeque and onsite bike repair, provided by members of the Homer Cycling Club and others. Six people ranging in age from 6 to 40 left with repaired bicycles, and two others are waiting on repairs but will soon be receiving bikes. Bikes Rock Homer has received 50 donated bikes since launching in February and has distributed 20.

East End Mini Storage is part of a three-facility operation known as Homer Storage and Rental. Homer is located on the southern coast of Alaska, about 220 miles south of Anchorage.