If you were to ask most people about the self storage industry, the most they would probably know would be about their friend or relative that had their storage unit broken into. When you hear about auction buyers finding a half million dollars in gold bullion, Civil War artifacts, or the canoes that Burt Reynolds used in Deliverance it’s not hard to see why self storage units get targeted.
Some of the tenants at a StorageMart in Kansas City were recently victimized. One executive, Tron Jordheim, for the company had this to say, "Typical break-ins occur when someone is looking for something very specific, such as electronics or valuables that are easy to spot. More often than not, the thief knows of a specific tenant and is looking for that unit, as in an estranged spouse or employer."
Security is always a concern at self storage facilities. The problem owners often have is in deciding how much since the costs of it will often be reflected in the rent charged to tenants. Go with a lot and rent may be too high, and your storage units will be empty; fail to get enough and a facility’s units may be too easy a target for thieves to resist.
StorageMart has offered some suggestions about security that people looking to rent self storage units should keep in mind, both what the facility should provide and what tenants can do to increase the security of their unit themselves:
• Make sure your facility has video surveillance. They do act as a great deterrent, and should the facility or your unit be broken into you can’t get much better evidence than video footage. Not only will it lead to a quicker arrest and conviction, but you could get your stuff back quicker should your unit be broken into.
• There are certain security measures that every facility should have like a fenced in perimeter (that is at least eight feet high) and pin pad entry. A fence is a good basic deterrent; the time it takes to cut one in order to take things out would only increase the likelihood that the suspects will be seen and/or caught. Pin Pad entry helps restrict access as well. The harder it is to get in to a facility, the less of a chance thieves will consider stealing from that place.
• The concept of pin pad entry is pointless if you share your access codes. This is not to say that your friends or family (assuming they are the only people that you would consider sharing your access codes with.
• Buy a good lock. The better one you have, the harder it will be for thieves to cut it.
• Don’t advertise what you are keeping in your unit. Don’t talk about the valuable things that you may be storing. Whenever possible have them stored in a nondescript cardboard box.
Sources Used:
“StorageMart Tells You What You Need to Know About Self Storage Theft.” PRWeb; 14 December 2011.
“Self Storage Auction Truly a Golden Investment.” Self Storage Industry News; 17 November 2011.