Archive for June, 2007
Moore Self Storage is adding more space in Winston-Salem, according to the Winston-Salem Journal. The paper reports that the new site will offer indoor RV and boat hangars secured by 14-foot-high electric-garage doors, small office and storage combination units for small businesses and contractors, as well as regular storage units of all sizes. It will be located in a local business park.
This is a strategic move for Moore Self Storage. The demand for indoor RV and boat hangars is gaining momentum and the location in the business park is enviable. Moore is among the self-storage industry players that is proving self-storage facilities aren’t just dirty little warehouses anymore.
June 15th, 2007
A Dundee firm has set up a website on which businesses can sell off unwanted or surplus stock, according to the Scotsman. Kangaroo Auctions - the brainchild of Steven Hourston and Chris Stevens, directors of Kangaroo Self-Storage - there is an estimated £24 billion of such stock annually in the UK, the story reprots.
“They claim their idea is Scotland’s first site dedicated to selling their goods, on the internet and, in a pre-launch trial period, has already secured clients as far south as London. The service makes use of a partnership with eBay, the largest online auction site in the world, which at any one time has some three million items listed and some ten million registered users.”
This is brilliant, ingenious, innovative. As self-storage continues to gain momentum on the international scene, firms in non-competing markets can glean from one another for the betterment of the industry.
Click here to read the rest of the article about Kangaroo in the Scotsman.
June 14th, 2007
The Wall Street Journal published an article last month that got the full attention of the self-storage industry. The article, entitled, “Self-Storage REITs Lose Heat,” chronicled the rise and fall of what it called a “tiny niche of real estate investment trusts in the self-storage sector.”
“A recent Wall Street Journal article reported that self-storage REITs are showing some softness. Same-store growth in net operating income declined a few percentage points,” said Michael A. Mele, Senior Investment Associate at Marcus & Millichap’s Mele Storage Group. “That may be true, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t still solid investments in the market. It just means investors of all sizes need to be more cautious about their acquisitions.”
Click here to read the rest of this release on PR.com.
June 13th, 2007
Marcus & Millichap’s Mele Storage Group is warning investors that the commercial mortgage-backed securities, or CMBS market is experiencing a minor setback. Problems in the sub-prime residential mortgage market are adversely impacting the commercial mortgage market. CMBS lenders are even seeing some of their aggressively underwritten loans being kicked out of loan pools as the spread requirements of the bond investors are increasing, according to a recent report from BridgePointe Advisors, a real estate investment banking boutique based in Alphretta, Ga.CMBS are securitizations of mortgage loans backed by commercial real estate. That makes CMBS similar to Mortgage Backed Securities (MBS), which are mortgage loans backed by residential loans. CMBS are not exactly a new financing phenomenon – it was created in the late 1980s – but this method has gained notable momentum in the self-storage industry. Essentially, CMBS are a means for investors to participate in the ownership of commercial mortgages. Apartment buildings, shopping or strip malls, office buildings, hotels, industrial buildings and self-storage, among other commercial property types, secure loans that serve as CMBS collateral.
“Some are calling the subprime problem the ‘elephant in the room’ and many investors are getting nervous about aggressive underwriting practices,” said Michael A. Mele, Senior Investment Associate at Marcus & Millichap’s Mele Storage Group. “This could be a blow to self-storage investors because the spreads had narrowed and CMBS was becoming an attractive long-term financing alternative.”
Click here to read the rest of this release on FastPitch.
June 12th, 2007
Check out the results for Atlas’ 2007 Corporate Relocation Survey. They bode well for self-storage and mobile storage firms.
According to the survey, over a fourth (29%) of responding firms expect their relocation volumes to increase in 2007 and 32% expect their relocation budgets to increase, nearly identical to expectations for 2006 (similar to 2004-2005, and significantly above the respective 13% and 15% levels reported in 2003).
Around half of all firms, regardless of size, expect relocation volumes and budgets to stay the same, similar to the past three years. As in the previous two years, roughly a fourth or more of all size firms expect increases and more large than mid-size or small firms expect increases.
- As in 2006, the majority of large firms expect relocation volumes to be at the same levels as last year. However, fewer large companies indicate increased expectations in relocation volume than in 2004 and 2005 (38% vs. 44% and 47%), although expectations remain significantly higher than in 2003 (only 19% projected increased volumes).
- Expectations for increases in large company relocation budgets dip slightly lower than in 2006 and 2005 (39% vs. 44%), returning to levels near 2004 (37%); but the percentage predicting increases remains considerably above that reported in 2003 (20%).
- Slightly more mid-size firms expect increases in relocation volume in 2007 over 2006, and significantly fewer expect decreases (10% vs. 22%). While the majority expects both budgets and volumes to remain static from last year, notably fewer indicate they expect budget decreases (8% vs. 17%).
Click here to read more about this telling study.
June 11th, 2007
According to Inside Self-Storage magazine, self-storage veteran Kenneth Cox has launched a new venture, Memphis Self Storage Group LLC. Cox, who spent eight years with Storage USA and later worked for GE Capital when the companies merged, has 12 partners in the business enterprise, which just acquired its first facility.
The group’s first purchase was a seven-building, 476-unit A-AAA Key Mini Storage facility in Memphis, Tenn, ISS reports. It was purchased from Brundage Mini Storages and renamed Memphis Self Storage. The group plans to invest in sites nationwide.
June 8th, 2007
Shurgard Self Storage Europe plans to raise as much as 752 million euros, or $1 billion, in an initial public offering (IPO). Public Storage will own as much as 52 percent of Shurgard after the IPO. Shurgard owns 167 self-storage centers in seven European countries and said it plans to develop another 16.
IPOs aren’t something we see a lot of in the self-storage industry today, but it’s likely that we’ll see more in the future as the industry consolidates and more companies head for the public markets. The IPO will help Shurgard fund its development plans in Europe, and is bringing positive attention to the industry. If the IPO goes off without a hitch, you can’t buy better marketing.
June 7th, 2007
Smart Storage is expanding its existing units in Wirral and Liverpool and opening new ones in Widnes and Warrington. Further operations are planned in other parts of the North West and Yorkshire with a target of 10 being up and running by the end of 2008. Bridges Community Ventures is providing £3.6million on top of £1.3million already invested in the business, while Royal Bank of Scotland is committing £2.34million. This site is about to double in size to 60,000 sq ft – making it one of the biggest self storage facilities in the North of England.
June 6th, 2007
The Grand Rapids Press reports, “Moveable storage containers are growing in popularity, and one local entrepreneur has big plans for the business he started here in the fall, MyWay Storage. Company founder Bryan Houck said mobile self-storage is beginning to take a bite out of the $22.6 billion self-storage industry. In 2000, $75 million was spent on mobile self-storage while, this year, it is projected to be $700 million, he said.”
With magazines and franchises springing up, it looks like a battle brewing between self-storage and mobile storage at some level. Could it be possible that mobile storage has done a good job educating the market about its benefits while traditional self-storage has stood by and watched? I’ll let you decide. What are your thoughts?
June 5th, 2007
Portable storage is getting an audience with the stars – music stars, that is. As the Lawn at White River State Park gears up to host its open-air concerts this year, including a visit from the legendary Bob Dylan July 15, portable storage will play a role in the production.Indeed, when the trucks drive up to the park’s green space toting mega speakers, musical and staging equipment and other gear, portable storage units will arrive with them to keep the entertainment kits safe and sound in between shows. Portable storage containers offer the secure, dry, and even air conditioned space required to store sensitive equipment. With multiple entrances, portable storage containers make it easy to access the equipment stored inside.
“Industries of all kinds are discovering the value and convenience that portable storage offers,” said John Finnessy, CMP, Executive Director of the National Portable Storage Association, or NPSA, a nonprofit membership association dedicated to the advancement of the portable storage industry. “Concerts at the Lawn are one of the many venues where containerized storage units can be seen across the country. The common denominator is that all of these venues place a high priority on securing equipment.
Portable storage containers may also be found on on-location movie sets. Weather elements can shut down entertainment industry productions, but rain, snow and other harsh weather conditions won’t put the equipment – if portable storage units are present. Of course, portable storage isn’t just for concert venues, on-location film productions and theater. Portable storage is finding uses across a broad variety of industries, from sports to construction to government to universities and beyond. The benefits are clear: safe, secure, convenient, climate-controlled, and versatile storage.
“If you’ve never paid attention to portable storage containers, start keeping your eye out for them,” said NPSA Operations Manager Joel Rathbone. “You’ll begin to notice them at local shopping centers, in schoolyards, on construction sites and in many other places. Portable storage is a part of doing business for many companies in many industries.”
June 4th, 2007
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