All Forum Posts by: John Lenhart

Are you purchasing in the Cincinnati area? I only thought they worked locally?

I worked with Tim a few years back on a loan for a small apartment building he did a first rate job. Really made it easy and he has connections with pretty much all the major and community banks in the area. Both Tim and Mike do a first class job and made the closing really seamless and they are both great individuals. 

What specifically are you looking to learn about storage In Ohio? Your question is pretty open ended. We do Self Storage in Ohio to answer your question, but I am sure you are looking for more specifics.

Industry average has operating expenses at 30%-35%. You may be a little lower on operating expenses given the size of the facility and you will not need the labor costs.

 Leo, if you have an animal policy you can control therapy animals in your units. For example, just because they have a note saying their horse is a companion animal, or their raccoon is a companion raccoon from a doctor, does not mean you have to let it into the building. There are certain "therapy" or "companion" animals that are not appropriate to live in a specific apartment no matter what the doctor's note says. You can reasonably discriminate. Also, the therapy animal has to comply with the rules of the building for pets regardless of whether they are a therapy animal or not.

We have had a few therapy animals we had to kick out because they did not follow the rules of the property (namely dispose of their waste properly or were constant barking)

I always recommend Balanced or Sundance. Sundance may be difficult because they typically manage larger properties.

You have to have a decent amount of equity in the property. Depending on the program at least 80% if you do a Fannie or Freddie loan. Insurance companies will require a bit more skin in the game. Typically, most non-recourse lenders require at least $1.5 in loan principal but prefer to do amounts much higher.

These loans cost more to close too.

@Sanjoy V. property taxes are always the largest expense of owning the property and should be managed like every expense. Most jurisdictions have an appeals process to contest the valuation but the process varies by jurisdiction. The key thing to keep in mind is that the county assessment is based on an overview of the entire market so if you Typically spend a few hundred dollars on an individual appraisal You can often get the property taxes reduced.

In addition, there are other strategies such as an entity purchase or even a structured sale that can help protect Against a huge tax increase.

I was at a conference a year ago and a person was presenting a plan to turn a parcel into a truck parking facility for long term truck and vehicle storage. It was interesting because the rents were very strong and it cost a lot less to develop than a storage unit, and it can be managed remotely easier. (No red locks, etc.). I know boat RV storage is tough to find in many areas and people pay a premium for it. 

We have expanded our parking area for boat and RV storage at a couple of our facilities for this reason. 

Carpet tile made with a floor mat material. This way they can get some of the dirt off before going on the other carpet. Also, don’t have to worry about it getting slippery

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