The age-old question of how to get the most out of investing in property prevails in 2021. If Storage Wars is your only frame of reference for the self-storage industry, it’s time to get educated! Today, we talk to Kenneth Nitzberg of Devon Self Storage about why this real estate sector is one of the most reliable profit-bearing avenues of investment you could take. Kenneth talks us through discerning when it is a time to buy, sell or build and how Devon Self Storage has prospered through the COVID-19 pandemic. Kenneth tells us how the online market and failed retail has supported the self-storage industry. Next, he details the perils of being too honest when you’re putting in a bid, why cities are hesitant to accommodate self-storage, and why Storage Wars is, in fact, a big scam. Lastly, Kenneth unpacks the ways in which self-storage is recession-resistant, but not quite recession-proof because the only industry that may fall into the latter category is likely to be beer. Kenneth concludes with the truth-bomb that the best way to make money is not to lose it in the first place. Tune in to better understand this underrated area of the real estate market and to learn how to capitalize on it as you plan your own capital investments.

Key Points From This Episode:

• Why the self-storage industry is one of the most reliable and profitable real estate sectors.
• Understanding the four food groups of the retail industry: office, industrial, multi-family, and retail.
• How to avoid or navigate permit issues when you’re establishing storage space.
• The three groups that form Devon Self-Storage’s primary client base - large institutions, high net worth family offices, and third-party property management.
• Identifying when it is time to buy, sell, or build in the real estate space.
• What has lead to Devon Self Storage’s boom and success during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The counter-intuitive concept of making money when you buy and not when you sell.
• Ways in which failed retail supports the self-storage industry. 
• What happens when you’re too honest about converting the use of the space you bid for.
• Three reasons why cities are reluctant to afford zoning rites to self-storage companies.
• Defining occupancy goals in overbuilt markets.
• Why the REITs occupation rates are a misnomer and how Devon Self-Storage has been able to raise their rates from January 2021.
• Why Storage Wars is a total scam and how it changed Devon Self-Storage’s auction culture.
• The implications of a recession on self-storage; why it is more accurately described as being recession-resistant than recession-proof, and how the trick to making money is not to lose it in the first place.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Devon Self Storage 

Devon Self Storage on Twitter

Devon Self Storage on Facebook

Devon Self Storage on LinkedIn

Devon Self Storage on Instagram 

George Carlin on Stuff