All Forum Posts by: Kyle Zaylor

The city's planning staff should be able to help guide you through the process. I'd recommend initiating a discussion with them once you're ready. To avoid getting a flat out "no", ask a lot of "what if" questions about their process and what it'll take to get a zoning change or permit approved during initial discussions.   

Some excellent points above. It all underscores the importance of knowing the pipeline of completed, under construction, and proposed projects in the market.  I'd recommend calling or sitting down with planning and building dept staff to walk thru their approved project and permitted project pipeline if you're far enough along with a potential deal.  They can help solve the zombie unit mystery by painting a clear picture of a given market's projected supply pipeline. 

For other podcasts out there, I'd recommend these ones on the commercial side:

Multifamily
Old Capital Podcast and The Real Estate Guys

Development
Property Developer, Smart Growth Developer Spotlight, Leading Voices in Real Estate, and TBG Real Estate 

Self Storage
Atomic Storage/3-mile Domination and Self Storage Show

There are also web and app-based products you can subscribe to that aggregate property information.  There are many out there but the ones that come to mind are AgentPro 24/7, PropertyRadar, LandGlide, and DealMachine. 

Kurt - if you're into podcasts, give the Atomic Storage and Self Storage Show a listen.  

There's a wealth of resources on BP if you're jumping into self storage for the first time.  I'd start with @Michael Wagner's blog and video tutorials, @Scott Myers' website, and @kris bennett's YouTube content. 

@Dave Peirce and @Yonah Weiss listed out some great resources. I'd also recommend subscribing to Atomic Storage's newsletter and podcast. 

The fee structure is all up for negotiation since it's with you and your capital partner.  It's a little easier to negotiate with a track record and proven successful projects under your belt on the sponsor side. I'd see what your partner(s) is comfortable with but also be upfront about the value you're bringing and general overhead expenses by managing the day to day work. A flat fee is simple and clean, but your partner may want to set up an incentive-based fee structure.  For your first deal, if you're both in agreement that a management fee is warranted, I'd suggest keeping the structure simple. 

Congrats on the deal, @Michael Wagner! 

It's hard to say the exact strategy because it's market specific and sometimes comes down to the exact tenant needs.  I think you're on the right path with fixing the building shell and HVAC. But doing the tenant improvements might be too early without a tenant's input first. You could always hold that capital as tenant improvement funds to be used as part of the negotiations with an interested tenant or agree to take the space to a "cold shell" level. A good industrial broker should be able to give some specific advice after touring the space. They are the most tuned in with what industrial tenants need.

Jessie and Michael beat me to the punch.  Commercial development is a risky business but the best developers in the space, despite being perceived as risk takers, are constantly assessing and managing their risk as a project gets developed. It's an art and a science at the same time.  Cutting your teeth for a local developer will help you build that risk-managing experience.