For many decades, self storage was a remarkably simple business. The product was almost always the same: a single-story, drive-up facility on a piece of well-located land, built efficiently, operated leanly, and supported by a fixed-cost base that allowed operators to absorb economic cycles with minimal disruption. It was, in many ways, a beautiful business model. Low overhead, sticky tenants, modest reinvestment requirements, and steady cash flow. The asset class earned its reputation as one of the most durable in commercial real estate precisely because it kept things simple.
V-2026: Back To the Basics?
