Self-storage space swelled in all 100 US metros where apartment inventories expanded, according to a new study from RentCafe.
In an analysis of the country’s top 100 metro areas, RentCafe identified where self-storage has significantly grown, supported by the growing apartment markets. The study found that roughly 350M square feet of storage space and 3.1M new apartments have been delivered nationally in the last 10 years.
Key highlights:
- The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metro area saw the highest growth overall due to its 17% population growth: The area added 199,037 new apartments and over 20M square feet of storage space delivered over the past decade, with a per capita inventory of 9.3 square feet.
- The New York-Newark-Jersey City metro area comes in second, adding 161,693 apartments and 17.6M square feet of storage space from 2012-2021 (26% of its existing inventory). However, the per capita inventory, at 3.4 square feet, is still one of the lowest among the country’s largest 100 metro areas.
- Similarly, New York added almost 162K apartments in the last decade. With an average size of 842 square feet, newly built apartments in the New York metro area are among the smallest in the country, further amplifying self storage demand and development.
- The Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land metro area follows in third with 142,446 apartments and over 15M square feet of storage space added, with a per capita inventory of 9.8 square feet.
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin mimics New York trends in terms of apartments and self-storage development: the area added 11.4M square feet of storage space and almost 72K apartments during the past decade.
- New apartments in Chicago are only slightly larger than those in the New York metro area, averaging 856 square feet. With a local inventory of five square feet of self storage space per capita, Chicago is still an undersupplied market compared to the national benchmark of seven square feet per capita.
- Construction trends amp up in the South and Southwest as increasingly popular locations keep attracting new residents: Arizona, Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas all have strong representatives among the 20 most active construction markets of the decade.
- The Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler metro area in Arizona, which ranks 5th overall, saw over 62K new apartments built and about 10M square feet of storage space added from 2012 to 2021, along with a 14% population growth. The self storage per capita clocks in at 7.4 square feet.
- East coast metros are working to mend their space-related challenges: The big metros – Washington D.C., Philadelphia and Boston metro areas – on the East Coast built significant volumes of both new apartments and self storage space over the past decade.
Major takeaway:
“Self-storage is becoming an important fixture for renters living in large urban hotspots where space is at a premium. 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,” said Maria Gatea, creative writer for RentCafe and author of the report. “One of the main drivers behind the flurry of new self storage space is the multifamily construction boom witnessed during the same time frame. Over 3.1 million new apartments in 50+ unit buildings were added nationally from 2012 to 2021, representing 20% of the large-scale apartment inventory, as per Yardi Matrix data. Moreover, apartment deliveries hit an all time high in 2021, with no less than 427K new rentals added to the US apartment market last year.”
For the full report, click here.
