The self-storage industry has seen significant growth over the last few years because of urbanization, population growth, and the increased demand for affordable storage. This growth is not limited to the US, but spans across borders, reaching far and wide – even as far as across the pond.

As an example, one of Norway’s leading self-storage companies in Oslo, Flexistore minilager i Norge, is experiencing a surge in its client base. In an interview we had them in preparation for this article, however, they told us that the cause of growth lies not in urbanization or population growth – numbers of which are quite stable – but rather, in a general increase in activity after the Covid restrictions were released.

Regardless of the country, the outlook for the self-storage industry seems quite optimistic. But does this recent and booming growth mean that it is too late to invest in this industry?

We would argue that it’s not. By looking at some key facts about the self-storage market, as well as the pros and cons of investing in it, we want to show you that it could prove itself to be a valuable part of your diversified portfolio.

What is the Self-Storage Market and How Much Money Does it Make?

The average self-storage company covers a space of 500 feet, and has 25 available units. Some of the most popular types of self-storage facilities in this space include:

• Moving and Storage Facilities (MSA)
• self-storage Centers (SSC)
• self-storage Warehouses (SWF)
• self-storage Containers (SSC)

Furthermore, storage operators are typically owner-operators with an average net worth of $2.3 million, but there are also larger corporations that make up a significant portion of the industry’s revenues.

What is perhaps of most interest to you, however, is that the self-storage sector has over $23 billion in annual revenue – a number that is expected to grow by over $10 billion in the next 10 years.

With these statistics, it’s clear that there’s a lot to be made by investing in this burgeoning industry. But before sending you off into your new investment adventures, we first want to mention some of the pros and cons.

Pros of Investing in the Self-Storage Industry

There are many advantages of investing in this industry. The primary one is that it’s a very passive business, unlike other retail-centric industries like grocery stores and clothing stores which require constant management and continuous predictions of the market.

The other major advantage of investing in this industry is that it provides access to an affordable investment opportunity for people who are looking for long-term investments with low risk.

Cons of Investing in the Self-Storage Industry

Whereas there can be much to be gained from prudent investments in self-storage, there are also some cons and potential risks that are associated with it. These include:

• It can lead to high losses for over-eager investors who, encouraged by the said-to-be low risk, think that they can just pour the money into the self-storage industry and expect it to yield great returns
• The industry has been going through a lot of changes lately, with many new competitors coming in and forcing prices down. This can potentially reduce the ROI of your investments

After having considered the pros and cons of investing in the self-storage industry, we believe you are ready to seriously consider it as a viable option if you’re looking to diversify your portfolio and explore this market.

The Self-Storage Sector is a Great Investment Now

All in all, we would argue that self-storage is a great investment now, as it appears to be one of those sectors that will remain less volatile than others, despite the changes that are happening. The Self Storage Association predicts that industry revenue growth will average 4% year-over-year through 2023, and U.S. Census data shows there was an 8% increase in self-storage space from 2009 to 2018, with continued upward growth projected by the SSA through 2027. These numbers are highly optimistic, and show that there might be something in it for you, should you start investing in the self-storage industry. 

Maintaining a business requires a lot of capital. Capital may come in different ways, from human and work cash-flow to financial capital. Yet, when the vast majority hear the expression “monetary capital,” the primary thing that rings a bell is generally cash. That is not really false. Monetary capital is addressed by resources, protections, and indeed, cash. Raising money can mean the distinction between organizations extending or remaining behind and being abandoned. In any case, how do organizations raise money and resources they need to make a big difference for themselves and finance their future ventures? What’s more, what alternatives do they have accessible? 

There are two kinds of capital that an organization can use to subsidize expansion: debt and stocks. Reasonable corporate money practice includes deciding the blend of debt and value that is most financially savvy. This article inspects the two sorts of capital.

Borrowing money

Financing through debt capital happens when an organization acquires cash and consents to repay it to the bank sometime in the not too distant future. The most widely recognized sorts of debt capital organizations use are credits and securities, which bigger organizations use to fuel their development plans or to finance new activities. More modest organizations might even utilize credit cards to raise their own capital. An organization hoping to raise capital through debt might have to move toward a bank for a credit, where the bank turns into the moneylender and the organization turns into the account holder. In return for the advance, the bank charges revenue, which the organization will note, alongside the credit, on its monetary record. 

The other choice is to give corporate securities. These bonds are offered to financial backers—otherwise called bondholders or banks—and mature after a specific date. Prior to arriving at development, the organization is answerable for giving revenue installments to financial backers.

Upside

Since corporate securities for the most part accompany a high measure of hazard—the odds of default are higher than securities given by the public authority—they pay a lot better return. The cash raised from bond issuance can be utilized by the organization for its development plans. 

Downside

While this is an incredible method to collect genuinely necessary cash, obligation capital accompanies a disadvantage: It accompanies the extra weight of revenue. This cost, brought about only for the advantage of getting to reserves, is alluded to as the expense of obligation capital. Interest installments should be made to banks paying little heed to business execution. In a low season or awful economy, an exceptionally utilized organization might have obligation installments that surpass its income.

Selling company stocks

Value capital, then again, is created not by getting, but rather by selling portions of organization stock. On the off chance that assuming more obligation isn’t monetarily feasible, an organization can raise capital by selling extra offers. These can be either normal offers or favored offers.  Normal stock gives investors casting ballot rights yet doesn’t actually give them much else as far as significance. On the off chance that the organization goes under, different banks and investors are paid first. Favored offers are novel in that installment of a predetermined profit is ensured before any such installments are made on normal offers. In return, favored investors have restricted possession rights and have no democratic rights.

Upside

The essential advantage of raising value capital is that, as opposed to debt capital, the organization isn’t needed to reimburse investor venture. All things considered, the expense of value capital alludes to the measure of profit from speculation investors on the exhibition of the bigger market. These profits come from the installment of profits and stock valuation. 

Downside

The detriment to value capital is that every investor possesses a little piece of the organization, so proprietorship becomes weakened. Entrepreneurs are likewise obliged to their investors and should guarantee the organization stays profitable to keep a raised stock valuation while proceeding to deliver any normal profits. 

As mentioned in the introduction, the answer to the question, “How do corporations raise money and resources to expand?” is balance. The prudent organization will find a good balance between taking up loans and selling company stocks to get raise money and resources to expand. 

In recent years, one of the main mistakes we see new investors make is that they think the stocks can only go up. This idea has turned very popular, and it may certainly appear to be true at times. 

“Hey!” an overeager new investor tells non-investors. “Look at this chart; for the last 10 years, stocks have only been going up – it’s a big waste not to put in some of your savings and watch your money grow!” Of course, this sounds too good to be true, but the non-investors can’t help but be convinced and start their own investment account. Before you know it, the number of people espousing that stocks are only going up is multiplied. 

Dips and down periods

The problem with this assertion is that every 5-10 years or so, we usually have major short-term dips in the stock market, and a bit less often than that, a shocking and long-term down period like we saw in the 1930s depression and 2008 crisis. 

When people say that stocks are only going up, it makes others believe that they’re missing out on a whole lot of returns, when they’re actually missing out on a whole lot of risk. Generally speaking, the more you can earn in the stock market, the more risk you’re taking. 

Start big and end small

For young people, this can be a good thing. Most financial advisors will agree that, if you’re a young person who wants to start a pension fund, you can afford more risk, and then gradually decrease the risk as you get older. 

An added benefit of having more money available is that you can take up personal loans at a much better interest rate. On the loan comparison website https://lanfordeg.no/forbrukslan/lan-uten-sikkerhet/ in Norway for instance, it is highly recommended to have as good an income and fortune as possible when taking up loans, as this will help in making it easier to pay back and banks will give you better rates because its less likely you won’t be able to pay them back.

Starting off with big risks can be a good idea because, in our twenties, we don’t plan on using our money for the next twenty to forty years, and therefore we can handle the volatile nature of the stock market. 

Shorter time horizon

Most people, however, can’t afford to make the same bet. They simply don’t have the option to invest, using the same time horizon, as they might be needing the money during the next 5 years or so. Keeping the 5-10-year dips in mind, wouldn’t it then be poor advice to say that the stocks are only going up, when in fact, the new “old investor” needs their money during one of these dips? 

Like the laws of reaping and sowing, it’s important to recognize that the stock market isn’t only going up, but has to go down at times to make the upward curve sustainable. It’s also better to realize this fact when times are good, as it would be awful to discover it when times are bad and we’re in the middle of a bad situation. 

Just a short post we felt to write this weekend to give some of our investors and readers a different perspective. 

When the coronavirus entered the world around March 2020, the situation has been dire in terms of certain kinds of trade. Whereas global trade has decreased overall, especially in physical locations, online trade has increased, which is reflected in the fact that we see an increase in the number of Norwegians who click on affiliate links to go to online stores. 

Compared with last year, we see an increase of 29.4% in the period March 17 to April 7. Right now the trend is that the increase continues upwards, and we will look more into how people in Norway are buying more home products than ever before. 

Home office, home gym, and home evenings

Not unexpectedly, we see clear trends in people spending their days at home and buying products accordingly. Below we point out some of the obvious trends that are happening right now.

Among the winners, we see products that make it easier to work from home. Now we all see each other at video meetings, which means that webcams have increased by an incredible 2548%, and video editing cards for processing video streaming are up by 653%. Classic computer accessories such as monitors (102%), docking stations (103%), computer mouses (74%), and keyboards (72%) are also experiencing good growth. In addition, office chairs are up 617%, and as we all know, an office is not complete without coffee and coffee grinders, which are up 179%.

Another booming home product is the Frisørsaks that the company Sakser.no is delivering to people all across Norway. They deliver both to professional hairdressers and to those who cut the family’s hair at home, which makes it a great appliance during covid since the local saloons have been forced to close down momentarily. Sakser have their own factories that produce scissors for us so that we can avoid more expensive intermediaries, and their scissors are tested by professional hairdressers before they make them available to the public.

Will home products continue being a gold mine? 

It is difficult to predict the future in these times, but we have seen affiliate traffic grow significantly in Norway during the quarantine and home office period.

Given that there will most likely be limited travel this summer, there is also a probability that consumers will want to use their holiday money in other ways, which in turn will strengthen both physical and online commerce.

With a more price-sensitive population and a larger share of the total online shopping, we believe affiliate links will continue to be an important channel for Norway’s consumers. We see that more people have now tried e-commerce and price comparison, which can benefit the industry also in the future.