Thread: Need Input about the REITs

Attention independent facility managers and owners! The real estate investment trusts play a large role in the self-storage industry, but opinions are mixed among operators as to whether these large players are harmful or helpful to small business. If you are an independent self-storage owner or manager (not part of a REIT family), the Inside Self-Storage editorial team would appreciate it if you would take a few moments to share your opinions in a brief online survey: What Do You Think of the Self-Storage REITs?

Your responses, which can be anonymous, will be part of a feature article published in the January 2013 edition of Inside Self-Storage magazine. Here is your opportunity to give your two cents (some of you likely have at least a dollar's worth) about how the REITs affect the industry and your business.

The ISS team sincerely thanks you for your time and input.

Tony, I took your survey, even though most of it was non-applicable to our current facility, as we don't have any REIT's here. However, I managed a facility in Florida for 3 years that had 4 REITS within 2 miles. I could give you some great info on THAT experience. Also the 3rd party management company I worked for in Florida was purchased by a REIT who was looking to expand their 3rd party management business...they didn't buy the facilities, just purchased the management contracts..I could write a book on that one! Sorry I couldn't have been more help, as it seemed like the survey was written only on current information, which I don't have much to offer.

In my opinion the only benefit of having the reits in our industry is so they can contribute funding for fighting the legislature. On the other hand taking their rentals can be like taking candy from a baby, if they want to let the site get run down and dirty looking and raise rents and force customers out then be my guest. And don't forget about how poor their customer service is. If the reits were not in the industry we would be playing a fair game, I beleive that most owners would be honest. We have a reit down the street that tells tenants they have alarms, and they don't. And the best part is the reits call centers, I can't tell you how many new tenants come in complaining about the call center.

Thanks, Lisa! I'm sure previous experiences with the REITs would be helpful for the article. Amy Campbell will be doing the story. I'll make sure she sees your post.

Thanks, MZC&D! If you haven't already done so, please take a few minutes to complete the survey. There are a handful of open-ended questions that allow you to fully express your opinion.