Self storage units

[Greg Gordon]

Does anyone know what the industry standard vacancy rate is for self storage buildings?

[Michael Wagner]

@Greg Gordon 85% occupancy is considered the industry standard for "Stabilization". It is widely accepted that anything below that, given a well run facility with no extenuating circumstances, anything below 85% is an indication that the market is over-saturated. Anything above would indicate that rates are too low at the facility and that demand is outpacing supply. As an active self-storage owner, I can tell you that I shoot for 88-90%. And contrary to popular belief that 100% is always the goal, this is not true. 100% occupancy is actually a bad thing because it means that our rates are too low, our marketing budget is being wasted because we have to send any leads to our competitors and, most importantly, it is a trigger for other investors to move in to your market. Hovering at 88-90 is an industry best practice. Hope that's helpful. Always glad to talk self-storage with folks who are interested.