Your Self Storage
Planning – Site Selection – Design – Build
Over 150 proven ideas to save you time and money and make you a success!
By Marc Goodin
Chapter 1
Should You Take Control of Your Destiny with Self Storage?
So you’re looking for something different? Maybe you were like me and enjoyed a great career but after twenty-five years doing the same thing you thought it was time for a change. As a civil engineer I worked with a lot of business owners and entrepreneurs but most of them did not have the life style, flexible work schedule and income I desired.
There was one guy who had both time and money and he owned self storage. His visit to my office over 26 years ago changed my life. Please let me share what I learned from that visit and later experienced firsthand to be true.
Why Start a Self Storage Business When I Already Owned a Very Successful Business? (Civil Engineering Company in my case)
Be Your Own Boss: And just as important for me – there are next to no employees compared to most businesses and no company politics to deal with everyday.
Flexible Work Schedule: I was able to keep working at my engineering business full time. Then one day I had replaced my engineering income and retired from engineering. Now my managers run the day to day business for my 3 self storages while I take care of the big picture and work in the office now and then for the fun of it.
Control Your Own Future and Security: Even as an owner of an engineering business I was trading dollars for hours. And there were never enough hours in the day. Self Storage provides a kind of residual income for life once you get it running on all cylinders. And all along you are building equity so you can have retirement income when you’re ready!
Growth Opportunity and Limited Risk: I was willing to work hard but I did not want to risk everything I had already accomplished so I looked for a growing industry, with high profits and high success rates. If you check out the self storage industry like I did you will find:
Self storage has higher long term return rates of all the major real estate categories including; Apartments, Office buildings, industrial, and retail and cost less to build.
“The Self Storage Industry has been one of the fastest growing sectors of the United States Commercial real estate industry for the period of the last 35 years.” Self Storage Association Fact Sheet
Self Storage is presently a $25 Billion a year business and projected to grow a whopping Billion dollars a year over the next five years.
Self Storage customers are located everywhere and more and more people are using self storage every year. Self Storage renters are as follows:
41% Long term residential customers
32% Short term residential customers
19% Commercial Customers
4% Military Customers
4% Other
Many self storages are under managed or poorly managed, including the REITs, allowing a knowledgeable owner to do better than the industry incredible returns. (Crush The Competition)
Building, owning and developing operational systems for my three self storage facilities has made a huge financial difference for my life. Just as important the personal fulfillment, enjoyment and satisfaction has been very significant.
What Are Your Next Steps?
Don’t take my word; check out the facts on your own. Visit a half dozen self storages and see if you can talk to the owners. This book will give you some more information and places to get additional information as well.
The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
The Ugly
Your success and your dreams are up to you.
We are ready to help but you have to make a decision to start and then pick up the phone and me (860-830-6764).
Unfortunately, we have to admit that perseverance is not the most human trait. People often refuse the truth because it is inconvenient. Accepting average or status quo is the enemy of great success. Too many people have told me “I was going to build a self storage but you (or someone) beat me to it. There is always an excuse if you’re looking for one.
Don’t wait! Get started today. Action will give you the results and belief you need.
The Bad
Your success and your dreams are up to you.
I have so often heard people saying, “I understand” and then I see them doing the exact opposite of what they thought they had understood. It is only when you put into practice what you have understood that you can really say that you truly understand.
Don’t wait! Get started today! Actions will give you all the results and belief you need.
The entrepreneur, the professional, the self storage owner, the investor, you – anyone who wants to build a self storage facility and take control their destiny will value the ideas in this book. It will provide a simple plan and required research that you can use to make your dreams come true; all you need do is make the choice to succeed. In this book, there are over 150 practices that have been outlined to help you plan, design and build a better self storage facility and make more profits.
“Self storage is easy, does not take a lot of planning or time or out of pocket money and always makes money.” There is nothing further from the truth, but I hear this all the time. For a typical self storage facility of 50,000 square feet you may invest $400,000 or more of your own money, borrow over a million dollars from the bank, and will personally spend many hours learning and planning before you rent the first unit. But a properly planned, operated and funded self storage facility can be a very rewarding and profitable business.
As soon as your self storage business is under construction everyone is going to tell you “I was going to build a self storage” but I never got around to it. You are taken the first step by reading this book. The second step is to take action every day until your dream comes true. You Can Do It!
Why do I mention Storage Authority in this book?
Throughout this book I am going to mention Storage Authority Franchising. At first you may think my goal is to advertise my Self Storage Franchise company. But I hope you understand, what I have realized after helping others in the self storage business for many years. Plus there is tons of great free information on the Stoage Authority News Room Blog from how do a mini demand study to 150+ K Kamrts that are closing, maybe in your town, that would make a great self storage conversion project. One out of a hundred people (or less) who read this book will start their own business. While in many respects, self storage is easy it is not simple and getting more complex everyday with very little help out there to get you started.
If you are the one in a hundred that will start your own self storage business on your own you can skip the Storage Authority information. Or better yet check out Storage Authority in detail and see how we are changing the self storage industry from customer guarantees, to apps, to reward programs, to internet platforms, to customer satisfaction, to sales and marketing and many other state of the art platforms so you do not get left behind and get crushed by the competition. Either way I believe this book will help you save and or make tens of thousands or even more before you open your doors. I know You will definitely get your moneys worth and will even use Storage Authority as your guide.
If you are not sure if you are the one in a hundred, then most likely you are not. The good news is I have referenced Storage Authority so you can consider joining us and taking what I believe is the fastest way to oversized self storage profits. Our time, expertise and experience becomes yours and together, your success can be just around the corner.
Chapter 2 Fun Self Storage Facts – coming next week
You can purchase this boo and other books by Marc Goodin at entire http://www.SelfStorageMarketing101.com