Rotorua self-storage facility has the goods

A successful self-storage facility in central Rotorua providing a lowmaintenance, straightforward investment in a popular sector has come onto the market for sale through CBRE.

The large property, located at 8,10 and 12 Railway Road and 151 Lake Road, just off State Highway 5 in central Rotorua, is being marketed by John Holmes and John Bedford of CBRE. Offered as a freehold going concern (land, buildings, and business), it is for sale by expressions of interest closing at 4pm on August 12.

Offering a significant 7797sqm land holding with two street frontages, the property is home to Lake Storage, a well-established self-storage business which has been operating at the site since 1993, said Holmes.

Lake Storage is a wellmaintained, large-scale facility which offers storage units of various sizes arranged in separate blocks. Storage spaces ranging from wardrobe-sized 3.4 cubic metre units right up to large garages 102 cubic metres in size are available.

‘‘Lake Storage has a consistently high occupancy rate in its 417 storage units, with only seven currently

vacant. Its excellent location close to the town centre means it is a convenient option for locals requiring storage, resulting in a stable, long-term customer base,’’ said Holmes.

Occupiers’ belongings are

protected by a range of security measures including an electric fence, alarm system and afterhours security patrol. Video surveillance and an electronic swipe card entry system allowing selective entry to individual blocks

provides a further level of security. The site is managed by one fulltime employee.

The property occupies a highly visible position in an excellent location within an established commercial

area on one of the main arterial routes into central Rotorua, said Bedford.

‘‘Lake Storage is well-located close to the town centre, where development land is scarce and

occupiers benefit from a surrounding large residential catchment,’’ he said.

‘‘The property is held in four titles with underlying Industrial 1 & 1E zoning, the opportunity also exists for the new owner to divest part of the property.’’

Bedford said that the popularity of self-storage properties as investment holdings has increased rapidly over recent years, resulting in storage assets now being considered a sub-sector of the commercial investment market in their own right.

‘‘Storage property investment is no longer solely the domain of smaller-scale individual investors.

‘‘The sector is now attracting institutions and bigger offshore investors, with key Australiabased examples including the $1.2 billion Abacus self-storage portfolio, as well as the ASX-listed National Storage REIT which both own storage assets in New Zealand.’’

The large occupier base associated with storage properties provides a diversified income stream compared with singletenanted industrial buildings, while typically also offering a highly stable cash flow and superior yield, Holmes said.

‘‘Demographic trends including retirees downsizing their homes and requiring storage for excess household items, as well as market trends such as high house prices, are expected to continue to fuel demand for storage units.’’