Research Reports

New York’s self storage sector satisfies local requirements in both the central and outlying areas, and was on hand during recent surges of moving activity. In terms of the space it provides per capita it lags behind other large US metros, but considerable development is underway to answer the needs of new, often younger, residents. The health of the local self storage sector is confirmed by activity in the marketplace: it saw a greater volume of transactions in 2020 than any other US city — almost half a billion dollars, most of it in Brooklyn — with street rates that, while not the nation’s fastest-rising, are steady right now.

Self storage proved itself again to be a reliable sector during challenging times. With people downsizing, companies giving up physical premises and college kids not on campus, self storage adapted, widened its customer base and gained even more public appreciation. But can it profit from these advantages going forward and continue to be a good option for investors?

Public Storage announced on November 1 its acquisition of 56 facilities from All Storage for $1.5 billion, accounting for 7.5 million net rentable square feet. 52 of them are in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas. Public Storage is the largest self storage brand in the US — and the world — and this deal follows hot on the heels of Simply Self Storage’s recent acquisition of storage facilities in Houston and Dallas.