Alternative ways to value self storage

[Brandon M.]

Looking for advice for those who own self-storage facilities. I have come across a small facility for sale, the owners are looking to retire. It is a simple block construction building, no security gate, no office on site, just a building.

The problem I am running into is the owners don't keep good records, and don't have ANYTHING electronic. They don't even seem to have a current rent roll, so I am not even sure how they keep track of who is current and who is late. The best thing I can get so far are 2012 tax returns, but that still leaves 19 months of unknown income. They are very unorganized.

I still think the income potential of this facility is promising so I am not getting discouraged. I just need to figure out how to value the building without being able to confirm income. Obviously I can manually calculate what they SHOULD be getting based on unit mix and which ones are occupied. As is at the current rates if all were paid on time I would be making 15% cash on cash return. Their asking price is $23/sq ft, although I would try to get it for closer to $20/sq ft.

The "appreciation" potential I like is that rates are EXTREMELY low for the area ($45 for 10x10, unit across the street with gate and office charges $77), so I would certainly increase rates. They are also occupying 6 of the 9 vacant units themselves, so I would be able to rent those out as well.

My question: Other than rent rolls, how else would you verify value before purchasing?