How to find properties for conversions!!!

There are a lot of buildings out there that start their lives as retail buildings, industrial buildings, or grocery stores that are prime candidates to convert into self-storage properties. The same is true with bowling alleys or ice skating rinks. The important thing to check when looking for potential conversions is the current zoning. You want to make sure that the property is zoned for self-storage so that you are not waiting up to a year to find out if this is a viable property.

When you are looking for conversion opportunities, they can be anything. You might find a property on Craigslist or a by owner website to a traditional listing with an agent. Many people don’t like to pay real estate commissions. LoopNet.com or Costar properties are websites to check for existing properties. Always do a google search and speak with a real estate agent about what you are looking for as well.

Look at all sizes of warehouses because a lot of them are on 3+ acres of land. We want to build 50,000 square feet and above so that we can sell our property off to one of the big guys as an exit strategy. Smaller buildings on large lots can also work because there is plenty of room for expansion. Another thing that retail buildings have is large parking lots. Those parking lots can be reduced to small parking lots to increase the amount of rentable square footage.

We don’t care about frontage the way that traditional retail stores do. We just need the property to have enough land that we can build a 50,000 square foot building or larger and enough frontage that people can access the property. Properties that have a small amount of frontage may not be desirable to the retail guys, but they are perfect for you.

As you are looking for properties, watch what the market in that area is doing. Is the market in that area appreciating or depreciating? What causes the need for storage? We are in the trauma and transition business. When people are downsizing and moving in with one another, then there is a definite need for storage. Our self-storage renters need a place to put their belongings while they are waiting for things to turn around. On the other hand, if your population is declining that may not be good for storage. It is hard to have any business if there is no one left in town. You don’t necessarily have to be in appreciating markets, but you want to make sure that you look at all the factors when evaluating a location.

Start looking for opportunities in your area. They are out there if you are creative. Start evaluating the market and the location to see if it is something that has potential and if it is begin your evaluation of the property. As always, happy investing.