Street Calls of the Week
Investing.com -- The New York self-storage market has recently begun to stabilize after several years of volatility, with analysts pointing to moderating supply growth and a recovery in population trends as supportive factors for future performance.
Industry data shows the metro area now has about 1,200 self-storage properties totaling roughly 85 million net rentable square feet. Yet, despite its scale, the market remains structurally undersupplied.
New York City proper has less than three square feet of storage space per capita, compared to a national average of above 6.
According to KeyBanc Capital Markets analysts, “this underscores the scarcity and long-term value of NYC assets, making New York Self Storage among the most prized holdings in the sector.”
The past few years were challenging. Between 2019 and 2022, the New York metro saw nearly 19% supply growth, with Brooklyn and Queens posting increases of 23% and 17% in net rentable space even as populations fell by more than 5%.
Pandemic-driven outflows and a rush of development following changes to the city’s tax abatement program created pressure on fundamentals.
The amendment to New York’s ICAP program in 2020, which excluded self-storage from receiving property tax abatements but grandfathered projects with permits issued before July 1, led to a flurry of permitting activity and a surge in new deliveries over subsequent years.
While self-storage operators benefited from outward migration into New Jersey and Long Island, growth in New York lagged higher-expansion Sunbelt markets.
Conditions have changed more recently. Deliveries have slowed sharply, particularly in the city, and population growth has resumed across most submarkets.
Supply growth that once reached nearly 30% across the metro between 2019 and mid-2025 has now moderated, with very limited new construction expected in the years ahead. Analysts expect this backdrop to aid occupancy levels and gradually lift rental rates.
CubeSmart is the most exposed to the market, deriving about 24.5% of its same-store net operating income from the New York metro area, including more than 15% from the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens.
Extra Space Storage and Public Storage also maintain meaningful positions, though their exposures are smaller.
“With both new supply growth forecast to moderate across the New York MSA and population growth steadying out, we see potential for Self Storage fundamentals in the New York MSA to continue to outperform in the years ahead,” analysts led by Todd Thomas wrote.
That recovery could be uneven. Central and northern New Jersey, which absorbed a disproportionate share of new projects, may take longer to recover than New York City.
Still, the overall market picture is firming, offering a more stable outlook after years of disruption and positioning New York self-storage assets for potential outperformance going forward.