Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa Real Estate Investor Magazine - May 2017 | Page 38

STORAGE
Self-Storage Facilities
The Ins and Outs
BY JEAN BROWN
A
s far as building developments go, temporary
or long term self-storage space appears to be
quite a ‘thing’ these days. From storing cars or
valuables while away on holiday, to packing up surplus
furniture, or an entire four-bedroom home ‒ whatever
your needs are, it appears there’s a self-storage facility
nearby just for that.
New self-storage facilities seem to be cropping up all
over the place ‒ and not just in industrial areas either.
You can just about find a convenient self-storage facility
right around the corner from where you live. Gone
are the days of having to drive for miles each way to
pick up or deliver items in storage. This makes renting
a storage unit a very attractive option, especially in
expanding cities, with high property and rental prices,
where living in smaller apartments is now the norm.
According to Gavin Lucas, the CEO of Stor-
Age, around 80 percent of Stor-age customers are
residential users, experience life changing events, such
as relocation, renovation work on a home, ending a
relationship or having a new baby.
Businesses also appear to be taking advantage of
off-site storage facilities to store their unused stock
or equipment off-site. This helps with locating stock
closer to markets, lowers transport and delivery costs,
and reduces business rental costs by reducing the
amount of office floor space needed.
34
MAY 2017 SA Real Estate Investor
So, how and why does it work?
Most self-storage facilities have websites that online
users can easily navigate to find out the information they
need for comparing quotes and services. Depending on
which service provider you approach, storage unit sizes
range from 1 m 2 ‒ 36 m 2 and are guaranteed access-
controlled, fireproof, dry, secure and pest-free.
Rental arrangements also appear to be quite flexible:
you can rent a storage unit and change your storage
unit size on a month-to-month basis if your storage
needs or stock volumes change.
DOING THE MATH
At one storage facility, a 6 m 2 storage unit, recommended for a
one or two bedroom flat, will cost you R1,499.00 per month. This
includes a R165.00 padlock fee and a R100.00 reservation fee.
You can rent a full garage unit for R1,270.00 per month from
another mini-storage service. Most facilities also offer loading,
unloading and collection services, as well as packaging products
- all at an additional cost.
RESOURCES
XtraSpace, Stor-age, StoreRSA, Securistore
www.reimag.co.za