Self-Storage conversions are one trend that has emerged from a deteriorating real estate market, and it’s a trend that boasts great benefits to developers. There are 4 major reasons to consider a conversion:

1. Current Real Estate Pricing: With real estate prices being at a historical low, it is fairly easy to obtain a suitable vacant warehouse or single-tenant building at a discount.

2. Lower Development Costs: With the foundation, walls, heating/air system, and other measures already in place, de- velopment costs can be cut in half from converting an existing building rather than starting from the ground up.

3. Shorter Construction Period: Not only do you benefit from a lower development costs, but the development timeframe is in some cases a third of what it would take to develop new, meaning less down time, and quicker cash flow.

4. Prime Location: A vast number of big box retailers, such as Circuit City, Best Buy, and Lowe’s, have either shut down opera- tions, or moved to other locations, leaving large buildings sitting dormant. National retailers put a tremendous effort into re- searching demographics and traffic for sites before choosing a location, so these buildings are in prime locations with char- acteristics suitable for self-storage devel- opment.