Storage Opportunity Partners

 

Services

  

SPM offers the following services to its self storage property management clients:

 

  • On-Site Management. SPM handles ALL employee issues on behalf of its property management clients. In fact, the employees are employed directly by SPM. SPM will ensure that your store is not only covered on a daily basis, but is covered by well-trained and skilled storage specialists. Our staff must complete a rigorous two-week training program before they are qualified to work on their own. Subsequently, our site staff receives multiple visits per week from home office and other supervisory personnel. In addition, each facility is audited on a monthly basis.

    SPM handles the following:

    • Hiring of All Staff

    • Staff Training

    • Scheduling

    • Payroll

    • Unemployment claims

    • Supervision

    • Site and Employee audits  

  • Revenue Maximization. SPM has proven experience with various methodologies to increase revenue. There are several revenue streams that many facilities ignore or underutilize which can dramatically affect store performance. These include: 

    • Unit Reconfigurations to create a unit mix that is more responsive to market demand.

    • Display of Retail Sales items such as lock, boxes and packing materials that have strong potential to create added “Other Income”.

    • Almost all of our facilities have on-site Truck rental services with one of the major national truck rental vendors such as Penske, Budget and U-Haul. Truck rental can be a strong revenue generator and helps drive storage customer traffic to the stores.

    • Fee imposition and collection, such as late fees, can constitute more than 10% of annual revenue. Our employees are instructed to not waive fees unless they receive prior approval from supervisory personnel.

    • Collections of receivables are often overlooked or ignored. SPM conducts monthly auctions and is diligent with past due rent collection calls in order to avoid losing revenue.

    • SPM has secured an arrangement with its third party provider of tenant insurance agency which pay a higher percentage of the insurance premiums to the owner than is typical, thereby creating a substantial revenue stream.  

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  • Expense Analysis & Reduction – SPM acknowledges that each of its clients is seeking to improve their bottom line. Accordingly, SPM is focused not only on maximizing Revenues, but also on reducing every Expense line item that is within its control, including:

    • Routine real estate tax appeals

    • Substantial property and liability insurance savings

    • Shared maintenance staff costs

    • Shared equipment costs on plowing/landscaping

    • Share relief manager costs

    • Shared website presence

    • Economies realized in materials purchasing

    • Shared Yellow Pages and other Advertising costs

    • Shared expenses for accounting staff at home office

    • Phone lines through master Internet-based system, including toll-free “800” Number


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  • Physical Needs Assessment. SPM will do a comprehensive survey of the physical condition of your property, and make a list of recommended repairs and improvements to enhance the competitive position of your property. for your review and approval.

 

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  • Facility Maintenance, Repair & Improvements. SPM prides itself on the physical appearance of the facilities it has under management. SPM believes that a key component of adding value to the Property is to bring the property up to the most modern standards in the industry. SPM implements approved upgrades to the following aspects of a facility, subject to client review and approval of the Physical Needs Assessment (above):

    • Office layout and finishes

    • Office hardware, software and equipment

    • Office Retail Display area

    • Security cameras and office display

    • Signage

    • Paving

    • Painting

    • Landscaping

    • Miscellaneous

  • Full-Service Accounting. Accurate and timely financial reporting is critical for owners and investors to understand the status of their properties. SPM handles all financial reporting for each property under its management. This includes providing monthly customized reports to our clients and their lenders. These reports include:

    • Monthly and Annual Income Statements

    • Occupancy Reports

    • Bank reconciliations

    • Payroll management

    • Bill payment

    • Budgeting and planning

    • Property Audits

  • Technology Assessment & Improvements. SPM is dedicated to improving its technology to create savings and efficiency at each property under management.

    • Accounting Software – SPM recently purchased an on-site Internet-based operations software package that allows our home office to download daily deposits and rental activity directly in to our accounting software, and thereby improve the quality and timeliness of our reporting

    • Website – SPM has engaged highly skilled vendors to both create a top notch website (www.thestorageprosonline.com) and also a vendor that specializes in “search engine optimization”, driving Internet traffic to our website. This generates thousands of low-cost leads per month.

    • 800 number – SPM utilizes an Internet-based phone system that uses voice prompts to properly direct all calls that come in through the 800 number. Additionally, all calls between our store locations and with the home office are free “in-system” calls.

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  • Marketing & Advertising. SPM utilizes a state-of-the-art marketing and advertising approach. The conventional advertising approach for self storage is rapidly changing. Yellow Pages have traditionally been the primary source of self storage advertising. However, the Internet has supplanted the Yellow Pages to become the most effective form of advertising. SPM is able to generate more than ten times the traffic on the Internet as it does with the Yellow Pages for less than 20% of the cost. SPM conducts the following marketing services for its clients:

    • Development of comprehensive marketing plans and budgets

    • Online lead generation and tracking

    • Target marketing to local businesses

    • Competition analysis of competitors

    • Re-Branding and signage if desired

    • Assessment of in-place advertising

    • Consulting and placement of Yellow Page advertising

    • Phone training skills for site staff

    • Newspaper advertising

    • Direct mailing

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  • Lender Negotiations. Lender relationships are critical to the success of any self storage investment, especially in these days of exceedingly tight credit. Accordingly, SPM always seeks to improve the financing for its clients to assist in improving their return on investment. Specifically, SPM assists clients with the following:

    • Financial restructe

    • Debt relief

    • Refinancing

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