Outdoor storage for bulk such as containers, equipment or manufactured goods make sense. All the rental income without providing a building. In our view a perfect investment. See our website outdoor storage opportunities here.

Well, that’s no longer easy to define!. The modern self-storage facility is currently undergoing a massive change. The change has been initiated with mobile technology allowing access remotely. Remote access means new facilities are being built in all sizes. Access is provided by the app and supported by a central control room. This flexibility will mean that operators will build new facilities according to the sites size and cost of land rather than, previously having a pre-determined minimum land size. To see our list of vacant sites, suited to self-storage please click here.

A self-storage facility will have up to 1000 storage units in variable sizes. Larger facilities sometimes have an onsite property manager, and each storer signs a storage agreement and is billed monthly. Storer’s rarely access their units and a standard facility has around 50:50 ratio of businesses to domestic customers. Domestic customers might store household furniture, wine, hobbies, or cars. Business customers might store files, stock, or archives. One of the most beautiful features about a self-storage facility is that because there are so many storer’s the total incoming income to the investor/owner is incredibly stable. The lease up time for a facility can take some time though. On average about 3 years to lease a 1000-unit facility. Some larger storage companies are now embracing fully remote-control facilities where access is provided by app. This is an emerging trend with the goal of reducing staffing costs. Simultaneously, and for a point of difference some operators are now advertising that their facility has onsite management as a point of difference to control room self-storage operators. To see our list of vacant sites, suited to self-storage please click here

Initially, storage facilities we built by converting warehouses.
Conversions of buildings are not as common now, more-often facilities are design built. Also, up to recently, the main priority was to build up 2000 units. Nowadays though, there is an emerging trend for facilities to only have 100 units. (please see more on this in our section on self-storage- emerging trends).  Facilities can now rise to 8 to 10 stories. Up until the early 2020s a newly built facility would generally have 1000 storage units and would be built on around 10,000 sqm meters of land with a footprint of about half that amount.. To see our list of vacant sites, suited to self-storage please click here

Because self-storage facilities have hundreds of multiple rent-paying storer’s interruption to income is minimized. In most other alternative commercial property such as offices or warehouses, the loss of several tenants would have a substantial negative impact on the income flow, whereas, a large self-storage facility, might have 1000 + storers paying monthly rent, means the loss of a few tenants has little impact.

There is also a factor that makes these investments extra attractive. Because land appreciates, and a self-storage facility generally controls a substantial plot of land, the prospects for growth in value are good. Working against the capital gain growth in a real estate investment is building depreciation. The good news here is that because the improvements required for a self-storage facility are minimal, depreciation is minimal, unlike office or elaborate industrial facilities where extensive fit outs are required.

Lastly, unlike other investments, people don’t visit facilities very often. This means that normal occupational requirements are not required such as a toilets and bathrooms. It also means that normal wear and tear on the buildings is reduced as well, this means less maintenance costs. To see our list of vacant sites, suited to self-storage please click here

Since 2020 the demand of self-storage space has surged. A combination of factors has contributed to the surge. Immigration to Australia has increased to approximately 400,000 per year, low ownership rates contribute to households moving more often and using storage as a shock absorber, and higher density living has put pressure on households and their belongings. In addition to that, baby boomers have started to retire on mass creating storage pressure as they downsize or pass away.
The self-storage Industry has consolidated in 5 major storage operator groups, although there are still many independants. For many years the larger storage companies have been acquiring existing facilities from the founders of the facilities. The original founders are often simply family groups or syndicates. As the larger storage companies become larger, their resources have become greater and they have been able to afford cutting edge technology to ensure occupancy and prices remain as high as possible. Sometimes, network operators change their storage fees across their networks hourly in order to keep occupancy as high as possible. Smaller facility owners have been the beneficiaries of this as well in terms offering competitive rates. To see our list of vacant sites, suited to self-storage please click here