With this setup, the buyer would still make the same monthly payments, but instead of stretching those payments over 30 years, they would need to pay off the remaining balance at the end of 5 years.

Storage occupancy rates during past recessions has remained relatively stableFor 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.

Quality properties have a longer lifespan remaining typically.  

Is the number under the "Mortgage amount" the remaining balance?

Despite this, the interest remains high.Inventory Levels: Active inventory saw a substantial rise of 45.5% to 9,230 units, with the months’ supply of inventory surging by 69.4% to 8.3 months.

I have transferred multiple times in/out of an LLC, so long as there are certain things that remain constant (EG the majority controlling interest in the LLC to the current ownership interest) I know that I have the exemptions that cover me. 

Or you can pay the taxes now and invest the remaining proceeds into syndications that potentially offer higher returns than DSTs. 

But some markets are still going to remain strong or experience only slightly less revenue.

TLDR: If you're in year 4 of 10 and pay the mortgage off, your payoff balance will be adjusted to reflect the cost of buying a gov't bond that will produce the equivalent amount of dividend payments for the remaining 6 years (in other words, one way or another, the lender is absolutely going to get their 10 years of payments).

But the resell market remains positive.