How to Earn More from Your Self-Storage Property Besides Rent
Rent represents an important source of income from your self-storage business, but you can earn extra money from storage units by looking beyond rent payments. Diversifying the way you make money from your storage unit can improve your business profit and can help you enjoy better returns on your investment.
Investment Real Estate, LLC works with many investors and buyers who have increased their revenues and ROI by diversifying how they make money from self-storage. We can pair you with self-storage investment opportunities, and we offer resources to owners as well.
How to Increase Self-Storage Revenue
If you’re interested in increasing your revenue, finding new options means thinking beyond rent.
Just Raising Rent Is Not Always Enough
While raising rent is one way to increase revenue, it is not sustainable. You can only raise rent so much before losing tenants and creating vacancies. Raising rent also means your business needs to expend time and energy contacting tenants to tell them about the increase and crunching the numbers to see how much of an increase the market can bear.
Increasing rent for tenants is necessary, as taxes, utilities and other costs go up. Many self-storage businesses handle this by having a set percentage they increase rent by each year, which makes the price jump predictable for tenants.
Adding Specialty Units Can Boost Revenues
Specialty renters are often willing to pay premium prices for special features and amenities at specialty units. Converting a facility or a section of units into specialty self-storage can improve revenues by helping you charge more for the same number of square feet, with just a few adjustments.
Climate-controlled units are a type of specialty unit in high demand. You can combine climate control with related services, such as paper shredding, to earn more. Oversize units for RV, boat and other storage also appeals to renters with higher incomes who are willing to pay more for quality self-storage services with excellent security and added features.
Some self-storage businesses even offer band rehearsal spaces. Since these spaces are hard to find, many bands and musicians are willing to pay a premium for a reliable space, and in many cases, they don’t need much beyond some electrical outlets.
Consider Installing Cell Towers or Billboards
Your self-storage business is already renting space inside units, but you can expand your revenue by leasing space outside, too. Depending on your location, you may also be able to sell billboard space on your property to other businesses. However, you will need to make sure any billboard you set up on your property is compliant with local laws.
A cell phone tower is another option that can generate monthly revenues. Cell tower companies are looking for places to build their towers, but to qualify, your self-storage facility must be in a compliant area where there is demand for a tower.
Are You Looking to Generate Revenue With Self-Storage Properties?
If you’d like to get a good return on investment with self-storage, Investment Real Estate, LLC can help pair you with quality opportunities. To learn more, give us a call at 717-779-0804 or reach out online to get started.
