The U-Haul Co. of Inland Northwest opened U-Haul Moving and Storage of Coeur d'Alene in Idaho. The facility, 750 W. Appleway Ave., celebrated the grand opening Wednesday in an official ribbon-cutting ceremony. Mayor Sandi Bloem attended, along with John Eide, president of U-Haul Company of Inland Northwest. The event also included a barbecue lunch and tours of the facility.

The 67,300-square-foot facility has 720 storage units. The building was retrofitted and redesigned with sustainability in mind. The lighting was changed to sustainable lighting, and U-Haul Moving and Storage of Coeur d'Alene also sells a wide variety of environmentally friendly packing supplies including boxes made out of recyclable materials, 100 percent biodegradable packing peanuts and moving pads made from recycled denim. Also available is the Take a Box/Leave a Box display, which allows customers or anyone in the community to leave moving boxes or unwanted electronics boxes for another customer to reuse for free.

Established in 1945, U-Haul has 36 million square feet of storage space at nearly 1,100 owned and managed facilities throughout North America.

The site of a former amusement park in Salem., Ore., is being converted into a self-storage facility.

The self-storage development received building inspection permits from Marion County in July, and construction on one building has commenced.

Thrill-Ville USA on Enchanted Way S.E. is adjacent to another amusement park, Enchanted Forest. Still in operation, the amusement park is separated from the Thrill-Ville land by a stand of trees. One of the owners of Enchanted Forest said the new facility will likely not have any impact on her business.

The Vettrus brothers opened Thrill-Ville USA in the 1970s. Before its closure in 2008, the park included more than 20 rides. Enchanted Forest has been in operation for 40 years.

A self-storage owner in Post Falls, Idaho, is among many business owners and developers unhappy about recent increases in county development fees.

When Robert Thomas first approached the Kootenai County board members with plans to build a new 7,200-square-foot addition to Prairie Avenue Mini Storage, the fees were $4,000. The fees then increased twice, more than tripling the first amount to $14,000.

The county is now collecting impact fees for public services including the sheriffs department, medical emergency units, the highway district and the jail. The fees were approved earlier this year, and collection began June 1. Under the new fee, new developments are charged per square foot by service entities impacted by the project.

Thomas said the permit is now 20 percent of the total cost for the self-storage project. He has asked the county to waive the fee because of the nature of the project, which he believes will not burden county services.

County Commissioner Todd Tondee said the impact fees are intended to ensure the same level of service as new growth increases demand. Tondee said the county has received complaints from other business owners and developers, but the board hopes the new fees will not dissuade new development.

Fed up with burglaries, the owners of a self-storage facility in Clarksville, Tenn., installed an $8,500 surveillance system.

Located near Fort Campbell Army Base and other military outposts, Modern Mini Storage rents a large number of units to military personnel. There have been more than 140 break-ins at the facility. Police think many of the break-ins were people looking for military gear stored by soldiers on deployment.

The surveillance cameras recently captured footage of a man breaking into a unit and loading items into his car. An arrest was made with 48 hours of the theft. Investigators believe there could be several groups targeting self-storage facilities in the area.

CPA: 17 - Global, an affiliate of investment firm W. P. Carey & Co. LLC, has acquired nine self-storage facilities from A-American Self Storage for approximately $46 million. The properties comprise about 662,000 square feet and are located in California (4), Illinois (3) and Hawaii (2). The properties are expected to provide consistent long-term income and diversification to our managed funds, according to W.P. Carey President and CEO Trevor Bond.

Reed Smith LLP represented CPA: 17 - Global as general real estate and transaction counsel in connection with the portfolio acquisition and financing.

The California and Hawaii properties will be managed by Extra Space Storage. The Illinois properties will be managed by SecurCare Self Storage.

W.P. Carey made its first self-storage investment in 2004 with the $312 million acquisition of 78 U-Haul facilities. Since then the company has expanded its involvement in the space and developed an internal team with industry-specific knowledge. CPA: 17 Global completed the acquisition of 24 self-storage facilities in July, also from A-American Self Storage.

"Having completed a recent transaction with A-American, we were able to efficiently work through the closing of these facilities, said W. P. Carey Director Liz Raun Schlesinger. We believe we will be able to maximize the performance of these properties through the combination of our own team and the management expertise of both Extra Space Storage and SecurCare Self Storage."

CPA: 17 - Global is a publicly held, non-traded real estate investment trust.

W. P. Carey is an investment-management company that provides long-term sale leaseback and build-to-suit financing for companies worldwide. The company manages a global investment portfolio of approximately $11.5 billion. Its investments span 28 industries and 17 countries, Publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange, W. P. Carey and its CPA series of income-generating, non-traded REITs help companies and private equity firms unlock capital tied up in real estate assets.

Storage Post, an Atlanta-based self-storage operator with 20 facilities, will exhibit at the Suffern Street Fair in New York on Sept. 18, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., to inform community members of its products and services. Held by the Suffern Chamber of Commerce, the festival includes food, games and vendors.

"We love working for the community and with the community to give them the storage they need year-round. Participating in this festival is just another way we can support the town and show what Storage Post is all about," said facility manager Sebastyan Kopolovich. "We can't wait for the fun of the festival to begin."

Fair vendors will be selling food, crafts, clothing, accessories, antiques and unique gifts. A petting zoo and pony rides will also be attractions. Scheduled entertainers include T.J. Teddy Bear, Ben the Magic Man, and two-time Grammy Award winner Wayne Cobham. Admission is free, with free parking in municipal lots.

Storage Post has locations in Georgia, Louisiana, New Jersey and New York. The company is actively pursuing acquisitions.

Every Saturday through Sept. 24, Store Self Storage and Wine Storage on North Military Trail in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., is hosting a Summer Green Market under its breezeway from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. During the summer months, its the only green market in North Palm Beach County. Other area green markets are seasonal, typically operating from October through April or May.

Approximately four dozen vendors participate in the green market. Available items, many of which are organic, natural or local, include fresh seafood, produce, spices, teas, olive oil, aged balsamic vinegar, handmade shell jewelry, soy candles, essential oils, plants, cleaning products, beef jerky, clothing, shoes and purses. Hot food is also served such as coffee, croissants, conch fritters and seafood paella.

The seafood vendor refers to himself as The Fishmonger. Other vendors include The Joy of Garlic and Hollands Produce

As shoppers enter the facilitys main entrance, they receive a reusable shopping bag branded for the self-storage business. Nearly 1,200 people attended Sept. 3 event, due in part to advertisements and street signage. Facility manager Rhea Slinger said public demand for the event has been overwhelming.

The additional traffic has lead to the rental of an additional six to 12 storage units, according to an article in The Palm Beach Post. Even though shoppers and vendors have increased since the event launched on Sept. 9, there are no plans to continue beyond this month. The storage facility does not wish to compete against the citys green market at Gardens Park, due to reopen on Oct. 16, Slinger said.

Capital markets are in flux again: the European crisis, Americas budget debates, slower gross domestic product growth, stubborn unemployment, fears of a double-dip recession, stock-market swings, natural disasters, Middle East uprisings, and the list goes on. Unfortunately, it all has a direct impact on the self-storage owner looking for financing today.

The last few years have been the most volatile Ive seen in my entire career of providing debt and equity to self-storage owners. Just last summer, if you were looking for a 75 percent loan-to-value (LTV), fixed-rate, non-recourse loan under $3 million, you had very few options, if any. In the beginning of 2011, extremely aggressive financing was available through the consumer mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) market, similar to what self-storage owners could have expected in 2007.

Today, the markets are in upheaval again, and lenders are reassessing their underwriting standards. Well have to wait and see how it all shakes out, but its likely that if you financed in the second quarter of 2011, you may have achieved the best rates and terms of the year, if not the foreseeable future. The chart below illustrates the non-recourse, fixed-rate loan proceeds available over the course of the past year if you had a self-storage property generating $300,000 in net operating income (NOI).

Date	Amount	Loan Type	Cap Rate	LTV
June 2010	$1,950,000	Life Insurance Company	10% arbitrary	65%
January 2011	$2,470,000	CMBS	8.5% arbitrary	70%
June 2011	$3,157,000	CMBS	actual	75%-80%, 9.5% debt yield
September 2011	???????	Lenders reassessing underwriting standards

The good news is at the time of this writing (late August), its anticipated the markets will start to settle down and permanent loans will be funded again, but with normalized underwriting. Most likely, this equates to a 10 percent debt yield (NOI divided by loan amount), 70 percent LTV and 1.30 debt-service coverage ratio.

Evaluating Lenders

The first thing a borrower should do when seeking a refinance is determine which lenders to contact. Many have downsized personnel, modified lending programs or simply stopped lending altogether. Its important to work with a professional whos up to speed on current market conditions. The first question to ask is whether the lender has closed a loan in the past 90 days. This will help you determine if its truly in business and lending. Many lenders may say theyre quoting loans but are being conservative and issuing terms that arent competitive with the market.

There are a variety of lenders in the market depending on whether youre looking for a construction, bridge or permanent loan. Additionally, you must decide if you want a recourse or non-recourse loan quote. Some of the lenders who provided specific loan options before the capital market collapse of 2008 may have completely different programs today. To make sure youve identified the right lender for your particular situation, you should at least consider quotes from life-insurance companies, CMBS lenders and commercial banks.

Preparing Your Package

Once youve identified the lenders youd like to approach for a loan quote, youll need to prepare a package for their review. Since many lenders have reduced staff, theyre not prepared to deal with large loan volumes. Your package must be professional in appearance and include all the pertinent information in a synthesized format so a lender can review it quickly to determine its interest. Packages should include:

• Trailing 12-month income and expense statements
• 2008, 2009 and 2010 year-end income and expense statements
• Trailing 12-month occupancy reports (physical and economic occupancy)
• Résumé including a schedule of real estate owned property
• Competitive market occupancy and rents
• One-, three- and five-mile demographics, including population, number of households, income, renter vs. owner, etc.

Negotiating the Loan

Once youve reviewed the varying loan terms and identified the best option for your business, focus on negotiating the loan application. Following are some of the items that should be part of your deal.

Contract wording. Negotiate the precise wording of recourse carve-outs to ensure they are as narrow as possible. This should occur at the application stage, when you have the most leverage. Many so-called non-recourse loans are not truly so since they contain recourse carve-out guarantees. For example, the loan documents may spell out certain situations in which the loan triggers recourse. These situations, normally called bad-boy acts, include fraud, waste, funds misapplication and voluntary bankruptcy filings.

However, the precise wording of these guarantees is crucial since you may be held fully liable for the loan. Be careful of the following language, which some lenders may identify in their recourse carve-out guaranty language:

• Borrower must maintain adequate capital to operate his business.
• Borrower must not admit in writing if he cannot pay his debts.
• Borrower shall be personally liable for unpaid real estate taxes and insurance premiums.

Prepayment penalties. Depending on the type of loan youre requesting, the prepayment options can range from no penalty at all to defeasance, yield maintenance or a declining schedule. Most of the shorter-term floating-rate loans will provide less restrictive prepayment penalties.

Borrowing entity. Fully understand the requirements for your borrowing entity. Some lenders will require a single-purpose entity, which basically states the borrowing entity shall not own any property other than the subject property.

Impounds. Negotiate the impounds the lender will be requiring such as real estate taxes, insurance and capital improvements, and who will be receiving the interest in these accounts, lender or borrower.

Understanding the Underwriting Process

Once youve executed the loan application and posted the good-faith deposit, the lender will start the underwriting process. Its very important at this stage to focus on two objectives. The first is to know who the lender is hiring to complete the third-party reports, including the environmental phase I report, property-condition report, seismic report and appraisal. The companies should be well-respected among their peer groups. When it comes to the appraiser, he should also have a strong understanding of self-storage.

Its important to meet each of these vendors at your property when they conduct their site inspection so you can answer all their questions. You never know what theyll conclude if left to their own assumptions. Its much easier to convince the person preparing the property-condition report that the roof is in good shape while hes on site then to argue with him once hes completed his report.

Its also extremely important that during the due-diligence stage youre in constant communication with the lenders underwriter. This is the person who will be completing the underwriting and sizing your loan for approval with the credit committee. Always keep good records so you can provide the underwriter historical non-recurring and non-property-related expenses that will help him maximize your NOI.

Closing the Loan

Upon loan approval, youll enter the legal-documentation stage. The key here is to have counsel who understands the documents being prepared by the lender. Whether its a CMBS, bank or insurance-company loan, make sure your counsel is familiar with whats standard and whats open for negotiation.

Finally, the most important point to realize in the loan process is your loan is subject to change until its officially approved. This is nothing new, but in todays volatile environment, theres much more that can go wrong. In addition to issues arising such as environment findings, missed appraisals and credit concerns, you can be subject to the whims of the overall capital markets.

The markets are volatile, and some lenders have clauses in their loan applications known as MAC (material adverse change). Basically this clause provides the lender with an out in the event the capital markets change and impact its profitability. This is a serious risk in todays capital market, so its always good to have an alternative lending option identified up until the day you actually close your loan.

At the end of the day, the good news is the risk and effort associated with the loan process in todays market still results in historically low interest rates.

Eric Snyder is a principal of Talonvest Capital, which provides debt and equity to self-storage owners nationwide. He can be reached at 949.636.3365; e-mail [email protected] ; visit www.talonvest.com .

Evans Self Storage, a 63,628-square-foot facility in Evans, Colo., sold for $2.5 million to a local limited-liability company.

The 469-unit self-storage facility is located at 1405 and 1515 32nd St. on approximately 3.71 acres of land. The facility is adjacent to the southern city limits of Greeley, Colo. Built in phases between 1973 and 1983, the facility is constructed of brick masonry.

Matt Tyler and Chico LeClaire, national self-storage investment specialists in the Denver office of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, had the exclusive listing to market the property on behalf of the seller and also represented the buyer.

We had investors from all over the country and even from Canada looking at this asset, Tyler said. Sales of self-storage facilities in Colorado are rare, but there is significant demand from investors on a national basis looking to purchase quality storage assets like Evans Self Storage here in Colorado.

Marcus & Millichap specializes in commercial real estate investments. The company has more than 1,200 investment professionals in offices nationwide.

STORE Self Storage & Wine Storage in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., will be the venue for the Wine & Design Showcase Oct. 11.

Hosted by the American Society of Interior Designers, Florida South Chapter, the event draws business leaders, elected officials and the public to view designer vignettes from south Florida designers. Design concepts will include kitchens, outdoor living, commercial office space and more.

The event, from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., will also include awards honoring Florida legislators. Area restaurants will provide an array of wines.

In addition to traditional self-storage, STORE Self Storage & Wine Storage offers wine storage, a tasting room, and a business center with a conference room.