storage unit investing? starting out?

[Brandon Morgan]

does anyone have any experience with investing in self storage? I am new to investing in real estate but I am open to new forms of investing. I recently started looking into self storage. Anyone have any advice on this in regards to how much money is needed, what to do starting out, how to start etc? 

[Michael Margarella]

Hi Brandon! We pivoted to self-storage a few years ago. One of the drivers of self-storage is the “four Ds”: downsizing, displacement, death, and divorce. All of those things, unfortunately, increase during a recession, providing a safer base case for self-storage than some other assets. Storage occupancy rates during past recessions has remained relatively stable

For example, during a recession, when folks downsize from a 3 bed/1 bath to a 2 bed/1 bath, those people, historically, keep their belongings and put them in storage.

Also, during inflationary times, self-storage operators can better manage rates because most leases are month-to-month. We're thus able to evaluate our rates, and keep pace with inflation, on a monthly and quarterly basis. I’d be happy to connect.