Self Storage KPIs Owners Should Track

Track seven numbers each month: physical occupancy, economic occupancy, delinquency, rent per square foot, rate gap, move-ins and move-outs, and net operating income. Each one has a short formula, and the direction it moves over several months tells you more than any single reading.

This guide gives formulas and one worked example. It does not give industry benchmarks, because we have not verified a source for them. Your own trend and your own market are the useful comparison.

The one-page scorecard

Open your rent roll first. Every number below comes from it.

The numbers in one worked example

Say you have a facility with 120 units. At today's street rates, every unit rented would bring in $100 a month, so gross potential rent is $12,000. You have 102 units rented at an average in-place rate of $92. You collected $8,900 last month. All figures are made up to show the math.

1. Physical occupancy

Physical occupancy = rented units / total units.

102 / 120 = 0.85, or 85%.

It is easy to read and easy to be fooled by. A facility can be 95 percent full because it discounts heavily.

2. Economic occupancy

Economic occupancy = rent actually received (or billed) / gross potential rent.

• Billed: 102 units x $92 = $9,384. 9,384 / 12,000 = 78.2%.
• Collected: $8,900 / $12,000 = 74.2%.

Physical is 85 percent, economic is 78.2 percent. The gap is discounts, specials and lower in-place rates. Collected is lower still because some tenants did not pay. Gross potential rent is explained in gross potential rent.

3. Delinquency

Past-due rent / rent billed. Billed was $9,384 and collected $8,900, so $484 was not collected.

484 / 9,384 = 0.0516, or about 5.2%.

Track the count of tenants too. See how to reduce delinquency in self storage and the delinquency entry. Look at aging: how much is 1 to 30 days late and how much is over 30.

4. Rent per square foot

Say the 120 units total 12,000 square feet of net rentable space (NRSF).

• Billed rent per sq ft per month: $9,384 / 12,000 = $0.782
• Per year: $0.782 x 12 = $9.38

Use total rentable square feet, not only occupied, so empty space counts against you. Track it by unit size too, to see which sizes earn the most per foot.

5. Rate gap

Rate gap = (street rate - in-place rate) / street rate. See rate gap.

($100 - $92) / $100 = 8%.

Existing tenants pay 8 percent below what a new tenant would. That is the room you have for rent increases. See how to raise rent on existing storage tenants.

6. Move-ins and move-outs

Say you had 9 move-ins and 6 move-outs this month.

• Net change: 9 - 6 = +3 units.
• Move-out rate: 6 / 102 = 5.9% of occupied units.

Count them each month and keep the list of reasons people give for leaving. See churn and how to handle move-outs.

7. Net operating income

NOI = income - operating expenses (not including mortgage payments or income tax). Say monthly income is $8,900 and operating expenses (taxes, insurance, utilities, software, repairs) are $3,100.

$8,900 - $3,100 = $5,800 a month, or $69,600 a year ($5,800 x 12).

NOI is the number lenders and buyers look at. See how to value a self storage facility.

How to read the numbers together

Do not change three things at once, or you will not know what worked.

Targets: how to set your own

We do not quote industry averages, because the numbers vary by market and source. Set targets this way:

1. Write down your last 6 to 12 months of each KPI.
2. Choose a modest goal for one or two KPIs. For example, cut delinquency by a point over three months.
3. Compare to other facilities only when you can verify their numbers (for example, an owner who shares figures).
4. Review monthly and change one thing at a time.

The Self Storage Association offers research and education for operators if you want industry reports; check what they publish and what it costs.

Where to get the data

• Software reports. Rent roll, occupancy and delinquency come from the system. See reports.
• Your bank. Match collected rent to deposits.
• A spreadsheet. Fine for small sites, as long as you update it the same day each month.
• The calculator. The revenue and occupancy calculator does the math above.

Keep monthly KPI sheets with your tax records. The IRS says records that support income and deductions should be kept until the period of limitations for that return runs out, generally 3 years or more.

A 15-minute monthly routine

1. Run the rent roll on the same day each month.
2. Fill in the scorecard.
3. Compare with last month and last year.
4. Write one sentence on what changed and why.
5. Pick one action.
6. Check delinquency every Monday.

Mistakes

• Counting only physical occupancy. It ignores price.
• Changing the formula from month to month.
• Mixing billed and collected without labeling.
• Using square feet inconsistently.
• Comparing to unverified averages.

Reading a month, line by line

Here is how the example facility above might summarize a month for itself.

The last-month column is made up. The reading is the useful part: occupancy and rent are improving, but delinquency got worse, so this owner's next action is on collections, not on marketing. That is the whole point of a scorecard: it tells you where to look.

Common questions about the formulas

• Should I use billed or collected rent? Use both and label them. Billed shows pricing power. Collected shows cash.
• Do I count units on hold or under repair? Count them as total units but note them. They lower occupancy honestly.
• Do I include fees and tenant protection income? Keep rent separate from fees so rent per square foot stays clean.
• What about outdoor parking? Track it as its own line, since square footage and rent are different.