A new report from Yardi Matrix illustrates how the self storage industry’s performance mirrors employment growth and population gains. Development activity for self storage space is highest in metros such as Portland, Ore., Nashville, Tenn., Seattle and Orlando, Fla., where corporate expansions and relocations, along with college student enrollment and multifamily development, are driving demand. Nationwide, units under construction and in the planning stages account for 9.4% of inventory. The report also documents strong development activity in Boston and New York City, which are historically undersupplied markets. Street rates for self storage units declined slightly nationwide in December a normal seasonal occurrence. In addition, the report notes, “New projects coming online over the past few months continued to weigh on rent growth at the national level, albeit at a much slower pace compared to the previous month.” Yardi Matrix tracks nearly 2,000 self storage development projects in the pipeline and maintains operational profiles on more than 24,600 completed properties. Read the full supply and rent recap for January 2019. Learn more about Yardi self storage...

Throughout multifamily housing, managers struggle with resident package logistics. The problem spikes in student housing communities. Student properties receive 10-15 percent more packages than conventional multi-family properties. A Growing Problem The convenience of (often free) delivery appeals to busy students. Additionally, companies like Amazon target the student population with incentives. Amazon Prime offers six months of free service and 50 percent off of students’ subscription rate for the remainder of their student status. As a result, student housing staff gets swamped with packages. Leasing office staff juggle a myriad of responsibilities. Pausing potential sales or residents interactions to handle package delivery is not a viable option. Maneuvering guests around recently delivered armoires and mattresses is even less of an option. “We’ve seen communities spend up to 4 hours a day simply dealing with packages,” says Melody Akhtari, Director of Marketing & Communications at Luxer One. “Package delivery causes not only a problem of constant interruptions and wasted time, but it also causes space management issues.” Simple Solutions Luxer One provides storage solutions to address the growing needs of student housing managers. Luxer One’s storage solutions are designed to accept every package automatically and store them securely, without the need for management staff to intervene. This type of automation eliminates interruptions from parcel carriers and gives back time and energy to dedicate to the art of community management. Luxer Lockers are installed on the premises. The courier delivers the package to the locker and scans it. Residents get a mobile notification with a one-time-use access to retrieve their package on their own schedule. Leasing office staff can continue their workflows and other resident interactions without interruption. Locker sizes vary, permitting the storage of a range of packages. “Almost half of all packages delivered go into our small...