So if you are getting into the self-storage business, or if you have found a deal you are excited about, congratulations. But what if you don’t have enough to fund the down payment? You may be asking, how can I raise money to do this deal?

Well, basically, you have two main ways to go:

Partners with money

Investors with money

Let’s explore each of these approaches.

**Self-Storage Turnaround Playbook**

**Startup Checklist**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**The 4 Critical Metrics Download**

**Five Mistakes PDF*

**Q1 2026 Virtual Self Storage Bootcamp Sign Up**

**December 6, 2025 Fast-Track Your Self-Storage Success — Free Live Webinar**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

When I first got started in the self-storage business, you could realistically get in the game with as little as 10 % to 15% down if you used SBA financing.

How much does it take today?

What is affecting how much money it takes to get into the self-storage business today?

What strategies can we use to help us?

Let’s discuss all that and more.

**Self-Storage Turnaround Playbook**

**Startup Checklist**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**The 4 Critical Metrics Download**

**Five Mistakes PDF*

**Q1 2026 Virtual Self Storage Bootcamp Sign Up**

**December 6, 2025 Fast-Track Your Self-Storage Success — Free Live Webinar**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

Every now and then, one can find an existing self-storage facility with a lot of potential upside and be able to negotiate a price that allows you to realize it.

But you need to be able to see it when it is there and know what your upside can be to negotiate it correctly.

You also need a plan, a step-by-step process to harvest the upside.

Let me share with you the four steps I took in one project and the upside we realized.

If you are interested in a download with the steps explained, here you go:

**Self-Storage Turnaround Playbook**

**Startup Checklist**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**The 4 Critical Metrics Download**

**Five Mistakes PDF*

**Q1 2026 Virtual Self Storage Bootcamp Sign Up**

**December 6, 2025 Fast-Track Your Self-Storage Success — Free Live Webinar**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

If you are getting into the self-storage business, or restarting in the business, here is a checklist and where I start with the people I work with.

My experience is if you start here, your chances of success are much improved.

You can also download the checklist below after watching this video.

This is a great business, but your success is not guaranteed. This work greatly improves your chances.

**Startup Checklist**

**The 4 Critical Metrics Download**

**Five Mistakes PDF*

**Q1 2026 Virtual Self Storage Bootcamp Sign Up**

**December 6, 2025 Fast-Track Your Self-Storage Success — Free Live Webinar**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

There are four basic metrics I think every self-storage owner should be tracking.

I track more than these four, but these four, I think, set an owner up to win at owning self-storage.

If you are not currently always tracking these to the point you know them off the top of your head, or at least get to them fast, I promise you, there is gold to mine in your facility.

Let’s explore them together, and there is a download if you want it.

**The 4 Critical Metrics Download**

**Five Mistakes PDF*

**Q1 2026 Virtual Self Storage Bootcamp Sign Up**

**December 6, 2025 Fast-Track Your Self-Storage Success — Free Live Webinar**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

Let’s talk about five mistakes see people making getting in the self-storage business today, especially people new to the business. Now I have made every one of them myself, so I will talk from experience.

Let’s shorten your learning curve up.

Here is a downloadable handout.

**Five Mistakes PDF*

**Q1 2026 Virtual Self Storage Bootcamp Sign Up**

**December 6, 2025 Fast-Track Your Self-Storage Success — Free Live Webinar**

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

Even seasoned storage people sometimes get focused on the wrong metric when analyzing self-storage. If you’re new to self-storage, it can be hard to understand all the financial metric slang and acronyms, and what one should really be focused on.

Which one matters most?

In this episode, we will peel back the facade and make these financial metrics understandable and give you access to using them powerfully as you move forward in your self-storage journey.

There is also a downloadable Excel worksheet available for free, which includes these metrics formulas already in place, to help you as you analyze your next deal.

**Cap Rate, ROI & IRR Calculator**

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

Last week we started a conversation about what I’m seeing in the economy, what may be coming next, and how that changes our self-storage strategy, based on research I dug into after hearing Michael Litt speak. As a CCIM in commercial real estate, our state chapter hosted Litt on “The Big Short.” If you remember the 2015 movie by the same name, it dramatized (and abbreviated) what his hedge fund did during the 2008 recession.

Last Week’s Episode. https://youtu.be/QAMZsyZCPx0

This week we will look at the impact of the tax bill, good and bad, the impact on the national debt, and how this can affect us as self-storage owners.

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

Some dots have connected in my mind recently that are reshaping how I evaluate self-storage trade areas moving forward. Surprisingly, this insight came from digging into the lives and current work of the people who shorted subprime financial instruments during the Great Recession—and what they’re focused on today.

I also re-learned an important truth when designing my self-storage and investment strategies: don’t follow the news, the politics, or the politicians—follow the money. See where it’s going. That points in a much clearer direction.

Next week, I’ll share where it appears the people who earned over 500% during the Great Recession are investing their money—and what they’re hedging against.

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**

Let’s talk about the biggest issue I see today in leasing up new self-storage space is overspending for online marketing that doesn’t produce results.

I see it happen far too often and have experienced it myself.

Here are the steps, spaces, and things I put my attention on as I work with vendors and/or employees to design and execute a marketing strategy and budget that works.

**Online Courses at The Quickstart Academy**

**Listen on Apple Podcasts**

** 5 KPIs we measure**

**My blog**

Creating Wealth Through Self Storage

**Facebook**

**Twitter**

**The Storage World Analyzer**

**The QuickStart Academy Store**