RentCafe: Multifamily Boosts Self-Storage Sector

RentCafe, Santa Barbara, Calif., reported self-storage development is being spurred by new apartments coming online all across the country.

In a new report, Mirroring Apartment Construction Trends, Self Storage Gets Big Boost in US Hotspots, RentCafe said nearly 350 million square feet of storage space has been delivered nationally–22% of the total existing inventory–in the last ten years as 3.1 million new apartments came online–a 20% boost.

“The self-storage sector has seen massive development in the last decade,” said RentCafe Analyst Maria Gatea. “The country’s top three metros for apartment construction of the decade–Dallas, New York and Houston–are the most active metros for self-storage construction as well.”

The report found self-storage space swelled in all 100 U.S. metros where apartment inventories expanded over the past decade. Construction trended upward in the South and Southwest as businesses and people alike relocate to those areas.

“Boasting a reasonable cost of living, a friendly taxation climate and a generally cheaper housing market (for now), southern and southwestern regions experienced a decade of intense economic and population growth,” Gatea said. “It may come as no surprise then that Arizona, Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas all have strong representatives among the 20 most active [self-storage] construction markets of the decade.”

The most productive year for self-storage development came in 2019, when nearly 2.2 million square feet of new space delivered, the report said. The decade’s apartment construction peaked in 2021.

“Self-storage is becoming an important fixture for renters living in large urban hotspots where space is at a premium,” Gatea said. “With multifamily and self-storage construction going hand-in-hand, renters stand to benefit from a reliable supply of self-storage, allowing them to live comfortably and enjoy neat, clutter-free apartments.”