You can run a small self storage facility part-time by automating the repeat work (rentals, billing, gate access) and keeping a fixed weekly routine for the rest: collections, vacancies, rates and a walk of the property. Write your rules down once, so you are not making the same decision every time a tenant is late.
This guide covers a routine for owners with 30 to 300 units. Some steps involve liens and leases, which are legal matters. That is general information, not legal advice, so check your state rules with an attorney.
The four jobs of a small facility
Everything you do falls into four buckets.
- Fill units. Marketing, answering inquiries, online rentals.
- Collect rent. Billing, reminders, late fees, lockout, liens.
- Set rates. Street rates, discounts, rate increases on existing tenants.
- Keep the site safe and clean. Gate, lights, cameras, repairs, pests.
The more you can turn into a system, the fewer hours you spend. Each section below tells you what to automate and what to keep by hand.
Set up the systems first
Rent and billing
Move as many tenants as you can to autopay, and ask new tenants to choose it at move-in. A tenant on a card or bank account on file pays on time more often than one who has to remember. See how to reduce delinquency for the full plan.
Decide your billing method, either first of the month or on each tenant's move-in date. See anniversary vs first-of-month billing. Pick one and stick with it.
Rentals
Put your units, photos and prices on a website with an online rental button. Every rental that finishes without a phone call is time you keep. See how to get more online rentals.
Software
You need one place that holds units, tenants, leases, payments and gate codes. A spreadsheet works at 20 units, and starts to fail after that. See self storage software for small business and the pricing page. Stitch Storage is self storage management software for independent owners, made by Hive Asset Group, LLC. Starter is $39 a month for up to 50 units, Pro is $99 a month for unlimited units.
A backup person
Name someone who can open the gate, check a unit and call you. Pay them a set fee per visit. It is the best insurance against a bad week.
A weekly routine that fits around a job
Times below are planning guesses, not benchmarks. Measure your own.
Monday: collections (20 to 30 minutes)
Open the past-due list. For each tenant:
| Days late | Action |
|---|---|
| Due date | Autopay tries the charge |
| Day 1 to 5 | Automatic text or email reminder |
| After grace period | Late fee added per your lease |
| Gate lockout day | Code turned off, tenant told how to pay |
| Later | Written notices per your state process |
Tenants who say "I will pay Friday" get a note in the account and a follow-up date. Use the delinquency call script to keep calls short and consistent. Look at collections without lawsuits for the next step.
Wednesday: vacancies and leads (15 minutes)
- Check what units are vacant and what they are listed at.
- Look at your website and Google listing. Is the price right? Are photos current?
- Reply to any reviews or messages. See Google Business Profile for self storage.
Friday: the walk (45 to 90 minutes, weekly or every other week)
Walk the whole site with a checklist.
- Gate opens and closes, keypad works
- Every light works
- Doors latch, no dents or rust on door tracks
- No unit door open or lock cut
- Overlocks are on the right units
- Trash and weeds
- Signs readable
- Roof, gutters and drains clear
- Cameras clean and aimed right
- Vacant units clean and swept
Take photos of anything you fix. They help with insurance and disputes.
First of the month: numbers (30 minutes)
Look at the reports: rent roll, occupancy, delinquency. Write down four numbers every month in a notebook or sheet:
- Physical occupancy: rented units divided by total units
- Economic occupancy: rent collected divided by rent you would get if every unit were rented at the street rate
- Past-due balance
- Move-ins minus move-outs
See KPIs to track, and the glossary entries for economic occupancy and physical occupancy.
Rates: a twice-a-year habit
Twice a year, set aside an hour for prices.
- Check three nearby competitors by phone or website, and write down their rate for each of your sizes.
- Compare to your street rates. Move yours up if your size is nearly full, or hold if it is sitting empty.
- Look at your longest-term tenants. Many may be far below today's street rate. See how to raise rent on existing tenants.
Your pricing method is covered in self storage pricing strategy.
Worked example (illustrative)
Say you have 120 units at $95 average and 96 are rented. Physical occupancy is 96 / 120 = 80 percent. Rent collected is 96 x $95 = $9,120. If three tenants totaling $285 are past due, you collect $8,835 that month, and your past-due list is the first thing to work. Raising rent on 20 long-term tenants by $5 each adds $100 a month, or $1,200 a year, for about one hour of work. That is the sort of task that pays for itself.
What to do when you cannot be there
If you are away for a week, put these in place:
- Autopay and lockout rules continue by themselves.
- Your backup person has the gate override and your phone number.
- A recorded message or auto-reply tells renters to use the website.
- You still look at the past-due list from your phone.
If you want to go further and have no one on site at all, read how to run an unmanned self storage facility.
Keep the records the law and the IRS expect
Keep each tenant's lease, ID record if you take one, payment history, and every notice you send. If you ever need to run a lien sale, those records are your evidence. Your CPA will tell you what to keep for taxes. See bookkeeping for self storage and self storage taxes and depreciation.
Mistakes part-time owners make
- Bending rules for friends. A late fee waived once becomes a pattern. Write the rule, then follow it.
- Letting lien work wait. A non-paying tenant in a unit you could rent costs you every month. Know your state timeline from self storage lien laws by state.
- Never raising rent. Tenants can stay for years. Rates left alone fall behind the market.
- No written procedure. If you cannot hand your backup person a one-page checklist, you are the system.
- Skipping the walk. A leak found early is a small fix.
When to hire help
Hire help when a task is repeatable, you can describe it in a page, and doing it yourself costs you more than the pay. Start with a part-time helper for the Friday walk, then consider bookkeeping help. The Self Storage Association lists education and manager training if you later want a staff person trained.
This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Review your lease and lien process with an attorney and your records with your CPA.