Self-Storage's Original Sin

It turns out not everyone loves self storage as much as we do, but grouping it into a sin tax with tobacco, liquor, and guns is going a little too far. Yet, that’s exactly what Prince George’s County, Maryland, has done. This county of nearly one million residents, located just outside Washington, D.C., recently passed an ordinance imposing a $5,000 annual fee on self-storage businesses, with the potential for future increases. The measure passed decisively, with a 9-2 vote. The bill’s “whereas” clause reads:

“Whereas self-storage facilities, also known as consolidated storage facilities, pose several risks to the public health and safety, primarily stemming from their improper storage of hazardous materials, poor sanitation, potential illegal and unsafe and criminal activities,”

Honestly, I can’t think of a single instance where self-storage posed a public health risk, unless you count the time I inhaled six months’ worth of dust while opening the door to my non-climate-controlled unit to retrieve a family heirloom: a 1976 Cadillac Eldorado convertible.

It seems ridiculous to equate self-storage with industries that are widely recognized as harmful to public health. It’s OK if someone doesn’t like self-storage, but just be upfront so we can have an honest debate. Instead, Prince George’s County has grouped it with retail that has less-than-positive impacts on communities. Someone from one of the self storage advocacy groups, both national and local, was asleep at the wheel when this was debated and voted on.

I looked up some stats on self storage in Prince George county and there was no surprise, it was expensive, around $2.00 per SF per month and it was right about at the national average of storage SF per person at 7. If the county was reacting to excessive new construction the rate would be much lower and the SF/capita much higher.

Looking at the data for self-storage in Prince George’s County, there’s nothing particularly surprising. Prices are expensive, averaging about $2.00 per square foot per month, and the storage square footage per person is roughly 7, right in line with the national average. If the county was reacting to excessive new construction, you’d expect to see significantly lower rental rates and a much higher square footage per capita.

The bill is so ill-conceived that nobody asked the question of what a $5,000 tax would do to a storage facility.

Had they asked, they would have found out, not much.