Storage Moguls
- Episódios
- 30
- Publicação
- semanal
- Local
- United States
- Último episódio
- 9 nov 2026
Sobre o podcast
What does it take to go from knowing absolutely nothing about self-storage investing to owning your first storage facility?
Turns out, less than you think. And Storage Moguls is going to show you exactly how.
Storage Moguls is hosted by entrepreneur and storage investing expert Joe Downs. Each week, Joe sits down with seasoned storage operators, real estate investors, SBA lenders, acquisition specialists, and students who've already done the deals, breaking down every piece of the self-storage and Boat & RV storage investment process so that anyone can understand it, act on it, and succeed with it.
Whether you're a first-time real estate investor trying to understand cap rates, NOI, and due diligence, or an experienced entrepreneur ready to scale your commercial real estate portfolio through storage acquisitions, this show removes every barrier between where you are today and your first storage facility.
No fear. No gatekeeping. Just the real storage education, SBA financing strategies, underwriting breakdowns, and passive income playbooks that turn beginners into Storage Moguls.
storagemoguls.ai. Practitioners, Not Professors.
Participantes
- Joe DownsApresentação
Episódios 30
Self-Storage Investing: Run It, Hire It, or Fund It
Send us Fan MailWhat happens when a management company's monthly minimum eats the profit on a small-town storage facility, and you already have a full-time job? Joe Downs sits down with Gary Edmonds, a …
Notas do episódio
What happens when a management company's monthly minimum eats the profit on a small-town storage facility, and you already have a full-time job?
Joe Downs sits down with Gary Edmonds, a 25-plus-year self-storage owner and operator from Macomb, Illinois, who left a 20-year insurance career to go all in on storage.
Gary has run facilities himself, run them for other owners through The Storage Manager, and now protects them with Knight Watchers overnight camera monitoring.
Together they break down the three paths for self-storage investors: run it, hire it, or fund it.
Learn the weekly hours a self-managed facility really demands, the revenue line that justifies a management company, the lease-up assumption that should make passive investors walk, and why this choice shapes your portfolio growth.
Listen For:
04:15 Is self-managing a 60-unit storage facility really a 10-hour-a-week job?
07:02 Is a sunny afternoon drive-by enough to vet a storage neighborhood?
11:44 Does Gary Edmonds say every self-storage investor needs a management company?
16:12 Is $125,000 in annual revenue the line for hiring storage management?
22:42 Is lease-up the top red flag in passive storage deals?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: GARY EDMONDS, CEO | THE STORAGE MANAGER
Website | LinkedIn | Email Gary | Knight Watchers
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos (5)
Storage vs. Flipping: Which Makes More Money?
Send us Fan MailIs house flipping quietly turning into the hardest way to build wealth in real estate, while self-storage investing hands back the time and equity flippers keep chasing? Joe Downs sits down with …
Notas do episódio
Is house flipping quietly turning into the hardest way to build wealth in real estate, while self-storage investing hands back the time and equity flippers keep chasing?
Joe Downs sits down with Christin Blunk, a former insurance company VP who, with her husband Rod, closed more than 450 residential deals across flips, rentals, wholesaling, and private lending.
Today she owns and operates three self-storage facilities, is finishing a ground-up build, and is a partner in four more.
Joe and Christin put the fix and flip strategy side by side with storage on money, hours, and risk, using 2025 flip data and real acquisition numbers.
If you are weighing your next asset class, this storage investing market comparison shows what the machine costs and what storage returns.
Listen For:
03:13 Is a $66,000 average flip profit as good as it sounds?
12:09 Did house flipping margins really shrink as more investors crowded in?
20:03 Can a storage owner legally sell a delinquent tenant's belongings?
21:33 Would Christin Blunk choose storage over a flip with $200,000? 2
6:14 Did house flip returns really hit their lowest point since 2008?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: CHRISTIN BLUNK
Warriors 2 Wealth Website | Warriors 2 Wealth YouTube | Christin's Instagram | Christin's LinkedIn
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
How Do I Get The Money?
Send us Fan MailDid the SBA just lock first-time buyers out of storage investing? Not according to the lender who finances storage deals every day. Joe Downs sits down with Anne Mino, a senior loan officer on …
Notas do episódio
Did the SBA just lock first-time buyers out of storage investing? Not according to the lender who finances storage deals every day.
Joe Downs sits down with Anne Mino, a senior loan officer on the self-storage lending team at Live Oak Bank, one of the country's largest SBA lenders.
Financing storage acquisitions, expansions, and new builds since 2019, and an owner of storage herself, Anne explains why projections-based lease-up deals are still in play, which debt service coverage targets to hit by month 13 and year three, and how the new guarantor, trust, and appraisal rules change partner-funded deals.
If you want to buy a storage facility and need proven financing strategies before your next deal, this is your insider briefing.
Your interest rate, terms and speed to receive funds differ based on your creditworthiness, industry and other factors. Member FDIC.
Listen For:
4:36 Can first-time buyers still get an SBA storage loan without experience?
6:09 Does Anne Mino rank liquidity above net worth for storage lenders?
14:20 Did the October 1 SBA changes really end projections-based storage loans?
24:04 Can partners still fund your first storage facility, according to Anne Mino?
29:08 Does every owner of an SBA-financed storage deal need US citizenship?CONNECT WITH GUEST: ANNE MINO, SENIOR LOAN OFFICER AT LIVE OAK BANK, SELF STORAGE DIVISION
Live Oak Bank | LinkedIn | Email | 910-550-2297
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
The 5% Management Fee Myth in Storage Investing
Send us Fan MailIs the 5% management fee in your broker's offering memorandum wrecking your underwriting? On a facility doing $100,000 a year, that line item works out to about $400 a month, and no …
Notas do episódio
Is the 5% management fee in your broker's offering memorandum wrecking your underwriting? On a facility doing $100,000 a year, that line item works out to about $400 a month, and no credible operator will run your phones, pricing, collections, and marketing for that.
Joe Downs pulls back the curtain on third-party management with Adam Wagner, President and Managing Partner of Anytime Storage Property Management.
Following a merger with The Storage Manager, Adam's top 50 firm now runs more than 90 facilities 100% remotely, including three of Joe's boat and RV storage properties.
Adam breaks down what 5% really covers, why lenders trust 3PM numbers more than owner figures, how AI sets weekly pricing with a human approving every move, and when a deal is simply too small to manage.
Underwriting a deal right now? Listen before your money goes hard.
Listen For:
10:30 Is a 5% management fee really enough to run a storage facility?
12:35 Does a 5% management fee cover your storage software and platforms?
16:18 Do lenders lean harder on a 3PM's proforma than on yours?
17:58 Can storage owners hire a 3PM and simply walk away?
22:14 Should owners meet their storage management company every single month?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: ADAM WAGNER, PRESIDENT AND MANAGING PARTNER | ANYTIME STORAGE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
Website | LinkedIn | Anytime Storage Property Management LinkedInCONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
Why a Lost Deal Became This Investor's First Storage Facility
Send us Fan MailWhat if the deal you lost to another buyer becomes your very first storage facility?Joe Downs sits down with Austin McLeod, who launched the self-storage division at Matthews in 2018, closed the …
Notas do episódio
What if the deal you lost to another buyer becomes your very first storage facility?
Joe Downs sits down with Austin McLeod, who launched the self-storage division at Matthews in 2018, closed the firm's first storage deal, and has since closed roughly $850 million in self-storage transactions across 26 states.
Austin pulls back the curtain on how brokers size up first-time buyers within seconds, why a lower offer backed by proof of funds and a clear underwriting story can beat the highest bid, and which offering memorandum details, from flood zones to property tax reassessments, catch new buyers off guard.
With 2021 and 2022 bridge loans maturing at much higher rates in 2026, motivated sellers are surfacing now.
This is the storage investing playbook for getting the broker's first call before a deal ever hits the market again.
Listen For:
3:32 Can a storage broker tell you're a first-time buyer in 30 seconds?
10:22 Should you still send an LOI if the storage deal is under contract?
14:38 Will a storage broker recommend a lower offer over the highest bid?
24:24 Is asking about seller financing a red flag to storage brokers?
28:21 Should you submit an offer that's $500K below the asking price?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: AUSTIN MCLEOD, SENIOR VP AND DIRECTOR OF SELF STORAGE
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
Storage Investing in the AI Search Era
Send us Fan MailWhat if the worst website in town is attached to the best deal you'll see all year? Two Storage Moguls students bought a self-storage facility with no website and a phone nobody answered …
Notas do episódio
What if the worst website in town is attached to the best deal you'll see all year?
Two Storage Moguls students bought a self-storage facility with no website and a phone nobody answered, then pushed it past 70% occupancy in under a year.
Joe Downs sits down with Alex Keller, who leads the sales team at StoragePug, the self-storage website platform that has grown from roughly 250 to 2,500 locations during his nearly seven years there.
Together they pull back the curtain on why 63 to 67 percent of storage rentals now happen on a phone, how AI search is rewriting local discovery, and how buyers can turn a seller's digital neglect into underwriting upside.
For anyone pursuing storage acquisitions in 2026, these are proven storage investment strategies for finding revenue hiding in plain sight before the next buyer spots it.
Listen For:
3:25 Does your self-storage website fail the simple rent-a-unit test?
9:37 Is hiding your rates online costing your storage facility rentals?
13:37 Is ChatGPT replacing Google for tenants searching for storage units?
20:02 Can a seller's weak website signal hidden upside in a storage deal?
25:08 Is it fair to underwrite extra rentals after adding a storage website?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: ALEX KELLER, SALES TEAM LEAD | STORAGEPUG
Website | LinkedInCONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
Can AI Tell You If a Storage Deal Is Actually Good?
Send us Fan MailStorage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 …
Notas do episódio
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Drop an offering memorandum into ChatGPT, ask "Is this a good deal?" and AI will almost always say yes. It never saw the rent roll, and it has no idea the facility down the street just cut rates.
Live at Funnel Hacking Live in Las Vegas, host Joe Downs pulls back the curtain on StorageMoguls.ai with Peter Swain, CEO of Peter Swain Inc. and a 25-year digital veteran behind more than 1,400 projects for Apple, Microsoft, Google and the BBC.
Together they unpack why roughly 85% of courses never get finished, how AI can "care at scale" for first-time self-storage investors buying $400K to $2M facilities, and why AI should never be the discernment layer on a storage deal.
If AI is part of your storage investing strategy, hear this guardrail conversation before you send your next LOI.
Listen For:
3:11 Is renting a storage unit online really cheaper than walking in?
11:40 Is a $50K storage course worth it if you never buy?
18:59 Can AI really keep first-time storage investors from quitting their course?
27:16 Can a local self-storage operator outrank national brands on Google search?
36:47 Does Peter Swain think AI should ever approve a storage deal?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: PETER SWAIN, CEO OF PETER SWAIN INC.
Website | LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram | Facebook
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
The Liability Litmus Test: How to Evaluate Storage Deals
Send us Fan MailStorage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 …
Notas do episódio
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Are first-time self-storage investors killing deals they worked hard to get under contract… over things that don't actually matter?
Joe Downs sits down with Rod Blunk, retired U.S. Navy nuclear engineer, lead mentor at StorageMoguls.ai, and founder of Warriors to Wealth.
Rod spent his career as a quality assurance officer on nuclear submarines, trained to find the valve that mattered before it became a catastrophe.
Now he applies that same liability-first framework to on-site self-storage due diligence.
This episode pulls back the curtain on the most expensive mistake first-time storage investors make: treating cosmetic wants like non-negotiable needs.
With new self-storage supply deliveries projected to drop from 65.2 million square feet in 2024 to roughly 30 million by end of 2027, investors who can close cleanly on imperfect facilities will own the next cycle.
Rod shows you exactly how.
Listen For:
4:49 How does a Navy nuclear engineer's liability framework change the way you evaluate a self-storage facility on site?
11:14 What does a real deal look like when a cosmetic want almost derails a legitimate storage acquisition?
15:04 What is the one thing Rod Blunk wishes every self-storage buyer evaluated before writing their offer?
20:05 How should first-time storage investors plan CapEx without budgeting themselves out of a deal?
25:31 How does competition in your market determine how much you actually need to spend on a self-storage facility?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: ROD BLUNK, FOUNDER, WARRIORS TO WEALTH | LEAD MENTOR, STORAGEMOGULS.AI
Website | LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram | Email | Facebook |
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
Four Problems, One Closing: How First-Time Investors Still Won
Send us Fan MailFour problems. One deal. One closing. What does it actually take for a first-time self-storage buyer to push through a due diligence report that surfaces a setback encroachment, a title defect …
Notas do episódio
Four problems. One deal. One closing. What does it actually take for a first-time self-storage buyer to push through a due diligence report that surfaces a setback encroachment, a title defect, a survey parcel issue, and an environmental flag. All on the same deal.
Joe Downs sits down with Mike and Stephanie Vostenak, retired corporate HR executive turned self-storage owner-operator and his wife, who closed on Murrayville Self-Storage, a 110-unit facility in Wilmington, North Carolina, just one month before recording.
They walk through the real-time decisions, the legal battles with county commissioners, and the team structure that got them to closing. Joe also shares current self-storage occupancy data, noting the national rate dipped to 82.2 percent as of September 2025, and explains why that gap from the stabilized 85 to 90 percent range signals an opportunity for investors ready to move now.
Listen For:
03:32 Has self-storage income actually beaten inflation for nearly two decades?
08:58 Are most storage operators already planning to automate in 2026?
15:38 Do you know what the average self-storage facility earns per square foot?
20:08 Is national self-storage occupancy where most investors think it is?GUESTS: MICHAEL & STEPHANIE VOSTENAK
Reliable Self-Storage | Mike’s LinkedIn | Stephanie’s LinkedIn |
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
The Drive-for-Dollars Playbook for Self-Storage Investors
Send us Fan MailIs the next storage deal hiding in plain sight…one you'll only find if you leave your desk and drive? Joe Downs makes the case for what he calls one of the most under-utilized acquisition …
Notas do episódio
Is the next storage deal hiding in plain sight…one you'll only find if you leave your desk and drive?
Joe Downs makes the case for what he calls one of the most under-utilized acquisition strategies in self-storage investing: driving for dollars.
Joe draws on firsthand field experience, including a story about being gestured out of a seller's office and becoming that seller's first phone call nine months later, to illustrate why physically canvassing a market transforms cold calls into what he calls "power calls."
With national average street rates sitting at $133/month and top REIT occupancy climbing back above 92%, Joe argues the window to build seller relationships in independent self-storage markets is wide open right now.
Investors who move first win.
Listen For:
:45 Why is "driving for dollars" the most underused acquisition strategy in self-storage investing?
5:54 What does the 2026 state of self-storage market report reveal about national street rates and occupancy?
9:00 How did host Joe Downs turn the worst interaction he's ever had with a storage owner into a first-call pre-listing opportunity?
20:45 How should storage investors structure a driving-for-dollars trip to maximize relationship-building in a new market?
28:30 Why is a "power call" always more effective than a cold call when pursuing mom-and-pop storage acquisitions?
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
What Every Self-Storage Owner Needs to Know About Truck Parking Revenue
Send us Fan MailWhat if the most profitable square footage on your self-storage property is the part you're not charging for? Truck parking is emerging as one of the fastest-growing ancillary revenue plays …
Notas do episódio
What if the most profitable square footage on your self-storage property is the part you're not charging for? Truck parking is emerging as one of the fastest-growing ancillary revenue plays in storage real estate and most facility owners are standing on top of it without knowing it.
Joe Downs sits down with returning guest Sydnie Wilda, VP of Properties Self Storage at Truck Parking Club, the platform now operating across more than 6,500 locations nationwide.
With nearly a decade of self-storage experience spanning onsite management, operations, and ownership, Wilda breaks down how storage investors can turn vacant lots, unused acreage, and fenced-off expansion pads into immediate revenue — with no construction, no major commitment, and full operator control.
Two or three truck spots at $250 a month adds $43,000 to your facility's value at a seven cap.
The opportunity is here now.
Listen For:
6:18 Is the truck parking shortage — one space for every 11 drivers — the ancillary revenue signal self-storage owners have been ignoring? 14:21 What does Sydnie Wilda look for when evaluating whether a self-storage property can support Truck Parking Club listings?
22:27 How does Truck Parking Club underwrite a property when formal feasibility data is still thin for this emerging asset class?
30:46 What are the minimum commitments — and the exit terms — if a self-storage owner wants to list with Truck Parking Club?
41:43 What does every self-storage facility owner need to verify before listing truck parking spaces to stay legally protected?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: SYDNIE WILDA, VICE PRESIDENT | TRUCK PARKING CLUB
LinkedIn | Instagram | Website
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
The Self-Storage Data Gap That's Costing Investors Money
Send us Fan MailWhat if the data separating a profitable self-storage acquisition from a costly mistake has been sitting inside public CMBS filings all along…and almost nobody in the industry was using it? Joe …
Notas do episódio
What if the data separating a profitable self-storage acquisition from a costly mistake has been sitting inside public CMBS filings all along…and almost nobody in the industry was using it?
Joe Downs sits down with Noah Starr, CEO and co-founder of TractIQ, the market intelligence platform tracking over 72,000 self-storage facilities nationwide and trusted by Brookfield, Public Storage, and Extra Space.
Before building the data infrastructure the industry was missing, Noah personally acquired eleven self-storage facilities across four states through his company Star Equity, underwriting deals that gave him a front-row seat to the blind spots that cost investors real money.
TractIQ now delivers historic occupancy, achieved rates, and full P&L data on more than $50 billion in self-storage assets… intelligence that used to be accessible only to REITs.
If you're evaluating storage markets in 2026, this is the episode that changes how you underwrite.
Listen For:
6:20 Why did Noah Starr leave institutional real estate to buy his first self-storage facility?
10:22 How does TractIQ help investors find off-market self-storage deals in under 30 seconds?
14:38 Why is checking today's competitor rates a self-storage underwriting mistake from the past decade?
22:34 What deals did Noah Starr lose and regret winning because of bad or missing data?
28:19 How should investors use CMBS occupancy data to verify a self-storage market before buying?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: NOAH STARR, CEO OF TRACTIQ
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
Is Your Storage Facility Properly Insured? Probably Not.
Send us Fan MailMost self-storage investors have never actually verified they're properly insured... and the ones who find out they weren't usually discover it at the worst possible moment.Joe Downs …
Notas do episódio
Most self-storage investors have never actually verified they're properly insured... and the ones who find out they weren't usually discover it at the worst possible moment.
Joe Downs sits down with Terry Campbell; commercial insurance specialist at Johnson Insurance and a storage industry veteran who has built facilities, underwritten SBA loans at Live Oak Bank for seven years, served as CEO of Copper Storage Management, and personally owns eleven self-storage locations across the Southeast.
Terry brings a perspective almost no insurance professional can: he sees coverage gaps through the eyes of an owner, an underwriter, and an operator simultaneously.
From FEMA flood remaps that sent one facility's insurance from $11,000 to $84,000 overnight, to coinsurance penalties hiding in aging policies, to the specific coverages first-time buyers almost always skip, this episode is a direct challenge to every storage investor who has ever assumed they were properly covered… without actually checking.
Listen For:
4:58 Why should every self-storage buyer check the FEMA flood map before making an offer?
14:47 How do you know if your current self-storage facility is underinsured right now?
16:07 What replacement cost mistakes are self-storage owners still making after the COVID price spikes?
22:15 What coverages does Terry Campbell say every first-time self-storage owner must have at closing?
29:55 How does insuring a boat and RV facility or small bay flex space differ from traditional self-storage?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: TERRY CAMPBELL, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER | SELF-STORAGE & FLEX SPACE
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
Carregando capítulos…
Catching Underwriting Mistakes Self-Storage Investors Miss
Send us Fan MailWhat if the biggest mistake in your first storage deal is believing the appraisal? Joe Downs and Jack Pezzino reveal how one student nearly overpaid millions for a self storage facility after …
Notas do episódio
What if the biggest mistake in your first storage deal is believing the appraisal?
Joe Downs and Jack Pezzino reveal how one student nearly overpaid millions for a self storage facility after relying on the wrong appraisal method.
They explain why income, not replacement cost, should drive valuation, why commercial appraisals differ from residential ones, and how inexperienced investors can unknowingly turn an asset into a liability. The conversation explores common underwriting mistakes, the danger of being either too aggressive or too conservative with assumptions, and why understanding the market is more important than simply analyzing the property.
Joe and Jack also pull back the curtain on Storage Moguls' deal review process, showing how an experienced second set of eyes can uncover costly mistakes before an offer is submitted.
Their biggest takeaway is simple: successful investing is less about having perfect information and more about validating your assumptions before committing to a deal.
Listen For:
10:03 Is seller financing the most dangerous trap in a mispriced self-storage deal?
12:22 Why do first-time self-storage investors underwrite themselves out of every deal?
20:24 How does Jack Pezzino calibrate the line between conservative and realistic in a storage underwrite?
27:17 Why is market underwriting the non-negotiable first step before valuing any storage facility?
33:58 What does Jack Pezzino say is the single move that separates investors who close from those who don't?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: JACK PEZZINO, VP OF ACQUISITIONS BELROSE STORAGE GROUP
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
Capítulos
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No Experience? No Excuse. Self-Storage Beginner's Blueprint
Send us Fan MailWhat does it actually take to run a self-storage facility you've never set foot inside, from fifteen hundred miles away, without a single day of real estate experience between you? Joe …
Notas do episódio
What does it actually take to run a self-storage facility you've never set foot inside, from fifteen hundred miles away, without a single day of real estate experience between you?
Joe Downs sits down with John Gaspar and Robert Figueiredo, co-owners of CubedUp Self Storage in Morganton, North Carolina. The duo are IBM veterans originally from Brazil who fired their third-party management company after just two months and took full control of their facility from Miami, Florida.
In seven months of self-managing, they drove physical occupancy from 70% to 84% and executed a 12% rate increase with zero tenant turnover.
This episode is a masterclass in self-storage operations, remote management systems, and the entrepreneurial mindset serious storage investors need to scale.
If you've been telling yourself, ‘you can't buy a self-storage facility because you're not local’, this episode dismantles that excuse entirely.
Listen For:
3:54 Why They Fired Their Storage Manager in 60 Days
5:41 The Delinquency Fix Every New Operator Needs
8:17 How to Run a Storage Facility From 1,500 Miles Away
14:08 Why Self Storage Thrived During COVID
14:31 The One Thing Stopping First-Time Storage Investors
CONNECT WITH GUEST: CUBEDUP SELF STORAGE
JOHN GASPAR, CO-FOUNDER | OWNER-OPERATOR
ROBERT FIGUEIREDO, CO-FOUNDER | OWNER-OPERATOR
LinkedIn | Facebook | Instagram
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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A Self-Storage Broker's Warning to First-Time Buyers
Send us Fan MailIs the self-storage brokerage relationship the most misunderstood edge in storage investing? And are first-time buyers quietly destroying their own deal flow without knowing it? Joe Downs sits …
Notas do episódio
Is the self-storage brokerage relationship the most misunderstood edge in storage investing? And are first-time buyers quietly destroying their own deal flow without knowing it?
Joe Downs sits down with David Perlleshi, Managing Director of Self-Storage at Franklin Street, one of the nation's leading self-storage brokerage firms.
David leads a national team with a buyer list of 10,000–15,000 active prospects and is currently on the front lines of a wave of COVID-era vintage loans from 2019–2022 coming due into a dramatically higher-rate environment.
He and Joe dismantle the fear-based myths holding first-time storage investors back, from lowball offer anxiety to blacklist paranoia, and reveal what actually gets a buyer frozen out.
With more than $1 trillion in commercial real estate loans maturing in the next two years, the storage investing window is opening.
The investors who understand how to work with brokers right now will be first in line.
Listen For:
4:12 Is self-storage really one of the most recession-proof asset classes lenders track?
11:50 Did compressed cap rates in 2021 create the underwater loan crisis hitting storage owners right now?
23:53 Why does a broker's commission structure make them just as motivated to find you a deal as close one?
25:43 Are $1 trillion in maturing CRE loans about to flood the self-storage market with new inventory?
26:43 What expansion opportunities are first-time storage investors missing on listings?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: DAVID PERLLESHI, MANAGING DIRECTOR, SELF STORAGE INVESTMENT SALES | FRANKLIN STREET
Website | LinkedIn | X| Facebook| Instagram| Email
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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Build the Systems, Scale the Storage Business
Send us Fan MailWhat actually separates storage investors who scale from the ones who burn out? The deals, or the systems behind them? Joe Downs sits down with his own business partner, Tim Kane, co-founder of …
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What actually separates storage investors who scale from the ones who burn out? The deals, or the systems behind them?
Joe Downs sits down with his own business partner, Tim Kane, co-founder of Belrose Storage Group and Storage Moguls and head of acquisitions for a platform with 20+ facilities and over $70 million in storage assets.
Tim pulls back the curtain on the systems that took Belrose from three guys fixing gate codes at night to a multi-vertical platform spanning self-storage, Pro Storage, and industrial outdoor storage (iOS).
From defining roles before you scale to leveraging AI and fractional talent, this is the storage investing playbook for anyone weighing their first acquisition.
In a market this fragmented, the window to build your system is now.
Listen For:
2:38 Is self-storage as an organized industry really younger than McDonald's?
9:45 Do independent operators still own the majority of US self-storage facilities?
17:06 Does self-storage really have the lowest default rate in commercial real estate?
26:41 Is industrial outdoor storage commercial real estate's fastest growing asset class?
30:18 Does any single company own more than 5% of US self-storage?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: TIM KANE, CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER | VP OF OPERATIONS | BELROSE GROUP
LinkedIn | Belrose Group | StorageMoguls.AI | Email | Instagram
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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Why Self-Storage Success Starts With Better Systems
Send us Fan MailWhat if the fastest way to grow your self-storage portfolio is to stop trying to do everything yourself? Joe Downs sits down with Magen Smith, CPA, CEO and co-founder of Atomic Storage Group, to …
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What if the fastest way to grow your self-storage portfolio is to stop trying to do everything yourself?
Joe Downs sits down with Magen Smith, CPA, CEO and co-founder of Atomic Storage Group, to unpack her remarkable journey from managing a single self-storage facility fresh out of college to leading one of the nation's largest third-party management companies with more than 180 locations across 30 states.
Magen shares how accounting, operations, marketing, development, and technology all intersect to create exceptional storage businesses, why great management is far more than collecting rent, how one lease up reached nearly $70,000 in monthly revenue within just nine months, and why AI is transforming operations without replacing people.
Whether you're considering self-management or outsourcing, this conversation offers practical lessons on data driven decision making, scaling a portfolio, building systems, and focusing on the work that creates the greatest long term value.
Listen For:
6:00 How did Magen Smith scale Atomic Storage Group to 180 facilities?
12:46 What drove a new self-storage development to 57% occupied in nine months?
21:37 Is the fear of losing control to third-party management actually backwards?
25:01 What was a REIT operator missing that let revenue jump 220%?
27:48 Which KPI should every first-time storage investor track from day one?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: MAGEN SMITH, CEO, ATOMIC STORAGE GROUP
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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Why Storage Investing Deals Die During Due Diligence
Send us Fan MailWhat's the one clause in your storage deal that could cost you six figures…and would your attorney even catch it? Joe Downs pulls back the curtain on the legal side of storage investing …
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What's the one clause in your storage deal that could cost you six figures…and would your attorney even catch it?
Joe Downs pulls back the curtain on the legal side of storage investing with Jason Mandel, the commercial real estate transaction attorney at Royer Cooper Cohen Braunfeld who quarterbacks every deal for Downs' 20-plus facility, $70M+ storage portfolio.
Mandel reveals the $900,000 mistake an ALTA survey prevented on a $1.5M self-storage acquisition, why signed LOIs are never fully non-binding, how to stop the due diligence clock from running before you're ready, and the title, zoning, and CCR landmines hiding in storage acquisitions.
If you're underwriting your first storage deal or still using your brother-in-law as counsel, this is the market intelligence you need before you sign anything.
Listen For:
2:29 What is the most expensive mistake first-time storage investing buyers make?
11:11 How did one ALTA survey save a $1.5 million self-storage deal?
14:20 Is a signed letter of intent on a storage facility really non-binding?
19:55 When does the due diligence clock actually start on a storage acquisition?
29:42 When does Jason Mandel say to bring an attorney into your storage deal?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: JASON MANDEL, REAL ESTATE ATTORNEY, ROYER COOPER COHEN BRAUNFELD
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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The 3 Fears Keeping You From Your First Storage Deal
Send us Fan MailWhat's really standing between a smart, employed, motivated person and their first storage facility… and why isn't it money? Joe Downs makes the listener the guest and pulls back the …
Notas do episódio
What's really standing between a smart, employed, motivated person and their first storage facility… and why isn't it money?
Joe Downs makes the listener the guest and pulls back the curtain on the three quiet fears that keep would-be buyers stuck: no one will lend me money, no seller will take me seriously, no broker will take me seriously.
Drawing on a portfolio of 20+ storage facilities worth more than $75 million across multiple states and verticals, Downs dismantles each fear with real numbers, DSCR targets of 1.20–1.25, SBA financing, and the 70–75% of US self-storage still owned by mom-and-pops.
He closes with a $1.1 million North Carolina acquisition that proves relationships, not credentials, win storage deals.
Essential listening for any first-time storage investor ready to stop researching and start buying.
Listen For:
3:25 Why do mom-and-pop owners still control most self-storage deal flow?
6:15 Will a lender really fund a first-time self-storage buyer with no track record?
9:28 How do first-time storage investors get sellers to take them seriously?
16:15 How did showing up in person save $100K on a North Carolina storage deal?
25:23 What is the one question every storage investor should answer right now?
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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Too Young, Too Inexperienced? This Storage Deal Says Otherwise
Send us Fan MailIs self-storage investing quietly within reach for buyers everyone assumes are "too young" or "too inexperienced”?Joe Downs sits down with brothers Aidan and Liam Brennan, the youngest buyers …
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Is self-storage investing quietly within reach for buyers everyone assumes are "too young" or "too inexperienced”?
Joe Downs sits down with brothers Aidan and Liam Brennan, the youngest buyers he's ever mentored, who just closed on Highway 119 North, a 136-unit, 12,800-square-foot self-storage facility in Pembroke, Georgia.
With no prior real estate experience, they negotiated an $800,000 ask down to an effective $680,000 then navigated a landlocked easement nightmare when the neighboring property owner died mid-deal.
This episode pulls back the curtain on SBA financing, underwriting, delinquency cleanup, and self-management for first-time storage investors.
If you've been waiting until you're "older" or "more ready," this storage investing story dismantles every excuse.
Listen For:
4:09 Is the average first-time self-storage buyer really over 45 in America?
14:13 Can first-time buyers with no experience actually qualify for SBA financing?
15:45 How did a property-line encroachment nearly kill Aidan and Liam's first deal?
32:48 Why is self-storage delinquency almost always worse than the seller discloses?
39:40 Should first-time storage owners self-manage or hire third-party management?
CONNECT WITH GUESTS:
The Storage Brothers Instagram | Brennan Asset Group Website
AIDAN BRENNAN, SELF-STORAGE INVESTOR & OPERATOR | ACQUISITIONS & ASSET MANAGEMENT
LIAM BRENNAN, WILDLIFE RESEARCHER AND PHOTOGRAPHER
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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What Banks Really Want From First-Time Storage Investors
Send us Fan MailIs a first-time storage buyer actually in a stronger position with lenders than an investor who already owns fifty properties? Joe Downs sits down with David Merkin, senior managing director at …
Notas do episódio
Is a first-time storage buyer actually in a stronger position with lenders than an investor who already owns fifty properties?
Joe Downs sits down with David Merkin, senior managing director at Eastern Union Funding, one of the country's largest commercial mortgage brokerages, who has placed debt on hundreds of storage deals across a network of 200-plus lenders.
Merkin pulls back the curtain on what banks really evaluate in self-storage financing: the sponsor, the story behind the numbers, and a credible business plan.
He explains why complex borrowers get rejected, what belongs in a lender-ready package, and why most deals die from self-disqualification…not weak fundamentals.
For anyone learning how to invest in storage, this is the financing playbook that turns "who would lend to me?" into a fundable deal.
Listen For:
5:44 What does David Merkin say lenders actually care about most?
13:50 How do first-time buyers hold a hidden financing advantage over veterans?
20:34 What does a clean, lender-ready storage financing package include?
24:18 Does a mortgage broker beat your bank on storage loan rates?
26:16 Why do most storage deals die before the application is sent?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: DAVID MERKIN, SENIOR MANAGING DIRECTOR | EASTERN UNION FUNDING
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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The Real Cost of Self-Storage Management
Send us Fan MailWhat's the one cost that quietly kills first-time self-storage deals... before the new owner ever collects a dollar? This episode pulls back the curtain on the management question …
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What's the one cost that quietly kills first-time self-storage deals... before the new owner ever collects a dollar?
This episode pulls back the curtain on the management question that's holding too many qualified investors back from their first acquisition.
Host Joe Downs sits down with Alex Erbs, Director at EquiCap Commercial and co-founder of Gateway Storage, who built a full internal KPI and operations system through Erbs Management Group before watching it merge with The Storage Mall, now one of the country's leading third-party management platforms.
Alex has been a buyer, operator, management company founder, and broker. He's lived every stage of the storage investing lifecycle.
In this episode, he breaks down what first-time self-storage investors get catastrophically wrong about NOI, occupancy, and management...and why the investors still waiting for a perfect deal are the ones losing the most ground right now.
Listen For:
3:28 Do most first-time self-storage investors fail to model third-party management costs before making an offer?
7:49 What does the management fear actually look like in year one and what does it look like after?
17:19 What are the three most critical KPIs every new self-storage owner must track from day one?
24:21 How does a seller's reported NOI differ from what a new self-storage owner will actually collect?
25:05 What separates the self-storage investors who close from the ones still looking 18 months later?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: ALEX ERBS, DIRECTOR | EQUICAP COMMERCIAL
LinkedIn | Email | EquiCap's Facebook | EquiCap's LinkedIn | Website
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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Data Points That Actually Matter When Closing Storage Deals
Send us Fan MailAre you still piecing together self-storage market data from six browser tabs, census pages, Google Maps, and a legal pad full of math while a motivated seller waits? The institutional buyers …
Notas do episódio
Are you still piecing together self-storage market data from six browser tabs, census pages, Google Maps, and a legal pad full of math while a motivated seller waits?
The institutional buyers cracked the code long ago, and in this episode, Joe Downs pulls back the curtain on the exact platform they use to do it.
Guest James Breunig, Head of Sales at StorTrack, the platform tracking over 74,000 self-storage and boat and RV storage facilities across the United States, brings 18 years of storage industry experience to the table.
Breunig reveals the 24-point data framework serious buyers use to evaluate markets, the single rate-trend indicator that predicts occupancy without even knowing the number, and why one data point will almost always steer a first-time storage investor wrong.
If you're in the research phase right now, this episode is your unfair advantage.
Listen For:
03:48 Why do most first-time self-storage investors rely on a single data point and get burned?
07:15 How does rate trend data reveal self-storage occupancy without pulling the actual number?
16:11 What does James Breunig show a first-time buyer on their very first day inside StorTrack?
19:43 How can self-storage investors use StorTrack's discovery tool to hunt deals across the entire country?
29:41 What does James Breunig recommend for investors still sitting on the sidelines doing market research?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: JAMES BREUNIG, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER | STORTRACK
James' LinkedIn | STORTRACK LinkedIn | Website
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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What Brokers Are Really Thinking When Your LOI Comes In
Send us Fan MailWhat does a self-storage broker actually think when your offer lands in his inbox and why does the broker's decision happen long before you ever submit an LOI? Joe Downs sits down with Matt …
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What does a self-storage broker actually think when your offer lands in his inbox and why does the broker's decision happen long before you ever submit an LOI?
Joe Downs sits down with Matt Rosendale, a broker with the Lindsey Self-Storage Group and a first-time storage facility owner himself, to pull back the curtain on how listed deals actually work.
With over a decade representing sellers and connecting buyers across the self-storage market, Matt reveals exactly what separates buyers who get to the closing table from those who never get the callback.
From proof of funds and buyer profiles to how brokers handle sellers still pricing like it's 2021, this episode delivers the insider self-storage investing intelligence most first-timers never get.
If you're ready to stop submitting blind LOIs and start closing deals, this conversation is your playbook.
Listen For:
5:33 What do first-time self-storage buyers need to do differently to get a broker's attention?
7:07 How does Matt Rosendale evaluate whether a buyer can actually close a self-storage deal?
14:07 How should buyers handle a listed self-storage property priced above what the market supports?
26:46 Can a first-time buyer really compete against institutional buyers and REITs for self-storage deals?
35:09 What should first-time storage investors do today to accelerate their path to their first facility?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: MATTHEW ROSENDALE, BROKER AT LINDSEY SELF STORAGE GROUP
Website | LinkedIn | Email | 484-695-0872
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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Are You the Right Person to Buy a Storage Facility?
Send us Fan MailWhat actually separates the investors who close their first self-storage deal from everyone else watching from the sidelines and why does it have almost nothing to do with money, intelligence …
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What actually separates the investors who close their first self-storage deal from everyone else watching from the sidelines and why does it have almost nothing to do with money, intelligence, or market timing?
Joe Downs sits down with Jack Pezzino, Vice President of Education at Belrose Storage Group, the man who runs the mentorship program, leads weekly live calls, and personally guides first-time storage investors from zero to one.
With Belrose Storage Group's portfolio exceeding $50 million across 20 self-storage facilities, Jack has a front-row seat to who succeeds…and why.
In this episode, he dismantles the most persistent limiting beliefs blocking new storage investors, reveals the real source of first deals (it's not brokers), and explains how data-driven decisions eliminate fear at every stage of the buying process.
If you've been on the fence about your first storage investment, this episode is your turning point.
Listen For:
9:35 Who actually closes their first self-storage deal and what does the real buyer profile look like?
14:25 What are the most common limiting beliefs blocking first-time storage investors from taking action?
20:04 Is SBA financing truly available for first-time storage buyers with no prior commercial real estate experience?
23:39 What does the emotional journey of buying a first self-storage facility actually look like at each stage?
26:55 If brokers aren't the main source of first deals, how are new storage investors actually finding and closing properties?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: JACK PEZZINO, VICE PRESIDENT OF ACQUISITIONS BELROSE STORAGE GROUP | STORAGE MOGULS
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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The Storage Facility Nobody Wanted. The Deal Everybody Missed.
Send us Fan MailIs the gap between what your storage facility is and what it should be worth more than the facility itself? Joe Downs sits down with Sydnie Wilda, operations and property management expert at …
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Is the gap between what your storage facility is and what it should be worth more than the facility itself?
Joe Downs sits down with Sydnie Wilda, operations and property management expert at Anytime Storage, a hands-on operator who has managed both boat and RV facilities and self-storage, including facilities within Joe's own portfolio.
The conversation delivers a field-level breakdown of the two most overlooked opportunities in storage investing right now: underperforming mom-and-pop self-storage facilities sitting 30% below market rents, and boat and RV storage operations being run like oversized 10x10 units.
With 600,000 new boats and RVs sold annually against only 25,000–30,000 new storage spots added each year, the supply gap is real, but Sydnie reveals why the operational gap is the bigger opportunity, and exactly how to close it.
Storage investors at every stage need this episode.
Listen For:
4:08 Why do self-storage operators consistently mismanage boat and RV facilities when they cross over?
6:26 How does access failure at a boat and RV facility damage tenant retention in ways self-storage simply cannot?
10:31 What does Sydnie Wilda actually see when she walks into an underperforming mom-and-pop storage facility?
14:05 How do bad Google profiles, below-market rents, and missed insurance revenue represent fixable management problems?
24:52 Where does Sydnie Wilda see herself in five years, and what is she doing today to make it happen?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: SYDNIE WILDA, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER | ANYTIME STORAGE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT
LinkedIn | Instagram | Website
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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The Seller Stopped Operating. The Data Made Them Stay.
Send us Fan MailWhat do you do when the seller of your first self-storage facility simply stops showing up? Phones go dark, the website dies, and occupancy craters to 40%...while you're still under …
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What do you do when the seller of your first self-storage facility simply stops showing up? Phones go dark, the website dies, and occupancy craters to 40%...while you're still under contract and $25,000 deep in non-recoverable costs?
That's the crisis at the center of this episode.
Joe Downs sits down with Adam and Kirby Leiby, a sales professional and homeschooling mom with zero prior storage experience, who purchased Lemon Springs Self Storage in Sanford, North Carolina for $625,000 in August 2025.
Less than a year later, the 96-unit facility is at 70% occupancy and climbing, year-one projections are hit, and deal number two is already in their sights.
Their story is a masterclass in one of the most valuable skills in self-storage investing: telling the difference between a market that doesn't want you and an operator who simply stopped trying.
If you've ever wondered whether you have what it takes to close a distressed deal, this episode is required listening.
Listen For:
1:10 How did two career professionals with zero storage experience decide to buy their first self-storage facility?
7:33 What does secretly shopping a 10-mile radius around a storage facility actually reveal about the market?
12:26 When occupancy drops to 40% mid-contract, how do first-time storage investors decide whether to walk or close?
15:40 What is the single moment Adam and Kirby Leiby decided to push through and close the Lemon Springs deal?
22:43 What does a storage investor's five-year portfolio vision actually look like in practice and what are you doing today to get there?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: ADAM & KIRBY LIEBY
Website | Adam's LinkedIn | Kirby's LinkedIn | Adam's Instagram | Kirby's Instagram | Adam's Facebook | Kirby's Facebook | Facebook Page
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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Cancer Threatened Their Income. Storage Made It Bulletproof.
Send us Fan MailWhat would happen to your household income if you couldn't work tomorrow? That single question is at the heart of this episode and for guest Christin Blunk, it wasn't hypothetical …
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What would happen to your household income if you couldn't work tomorrow?
That single question is at the heart of this episode and for guest Christin Blunk, it wasn't hypothetical. When her husband Rod was diagnosed with stage four cancer three days before Christmas, their income stopped cold.
What followed transformed their life with 20 years of residential real estate experience into self-storage investors generating $12,000 per month in passive cash flow…on less than 15 hours of management per month.
Joe Downs sits down with Christin to unpack how she and Rod found and financed two self-storage facilities in Kentucky using conventional bank financing, no SBA, no private equity, with a combined investment of under $200,000 and built a portfolio now tracking toward $3.75–$4 million at exit.
If you've been sitting on the fence about self-storage investing, this episode is your wake-up call.
Listen For:
7:13 How did a stage four cancer diagnosis completely change the way Christin Blunk thinks about income and self-storage investing?
12:24 Why did Christin spend a full year educating herself before buying her first self-storage facility, even with 20 years of real estate experience?
17:14 How did Christin finance her first self-storage acquisition using conventional local bank financing with just 20% down?
22:49 What did Christin discover during due diligence on her second self-storage deal, and how did she turn 40 non-paying tenants into an advantage?
34:36 What does Christin Blunk say to the storage investor who has all the information they need but still hasn't pulled the trigger?
CONNECT WITH GUEST: CHRISTIN BLUNK
Warriors 2 Wealth Website | Warriors 2 Wealth YouTube | Christin's Instagram | Christin's LinkedIn
CONNECT WITH US
Belrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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Storage Moguls Trailer
Send us Fan MailStorage Moguls, hosted by entrepreneur and storage investing expert Joe Downs, is the go-to podcast for real estate investors, entrepreneurs, and self storage operators serious about building …
Notas do episódio
Storage Moguls, hosted by entrepreneur and storage investing expert Joe Downs, is the go-to podcast for real estate investors, entrepreneurs, and self storage operators serious about building wealth through self storage and Boat & RV storage. Each week, Joe sits down with industry experts, seasoned storage operators, and students who've done the deals, delivering deep-dive conversations on underwriting, SBA loans, SBA financing, deal analysis, storage acquisitions, facility valuation, cap rates, NOI, and everything in between. Whether you're a first-time real estate investor evaluating your first storage facility or an experienced entrepreneur scaling your commercial real estate portfolio, Storage Moguls gives you the real-world storage education and passive income strategies you need to move with confidence. They will thank you later.
Check out the FULL episode on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@TheStorageMoguls
60 minutes
Storage Moguls Live. Friday, October 16 in White Marsh, Maryland. One day with self storage owners. Walk through a real facility and learn how they find, finance, and close deals. Only 15 tickets. Register at https://go.storagemoguls.ai/white-marsh-md before Thursday.
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