Legal Issues

If I could offer you a product to substantially increase your ability to easily collect rents every month, with the potential for less “missing” money and mistakes, would you buy it? Ironically, it’s not for sale, and it may be something already in your office, but you’re afraid to use it. What is it? It's a request for tenants to ...

During 2007, operators learned they are prime targets for claims that would not have been brought against them five years ago. Increasing numbers of operators are being sued in court, or have claims against them through arbitration groups, Better Business Bureau mandatory arbitration, and even church-based arbitration/mediation groups. The legal year in review was capped off with a $3.79 million ...

It’s been some time since the self-storage industry has seen a large judgment against a facility owner. But the recent appellate decision in the case of Barshak v. American Equity Insurance Co. has jolted the industry to recognize the risks of a wrongful foreclosure sale of a tenant’s stored property. This case has some unique facts storage operators should ...

The storage industry, particularly in densely populated areas, often uses hybrid rental agreements that give rise to legal issues and can be very costly to an owner. Ambiguous lease clauses can provide a predicate for a tenant’s overcharge claims, or defenses against an owner’s efforts to collect additional rent, or even base rent. The problem is exacerbated when a ...

There are many circumstances under which a self-storage operator can choose not to rent a unit to an individual. Of course, the exposure to the operator could be enormous if the necessary safeguards aren’t instituted prior to the “refusal.” Your rental procedures and requirements should be clearly established and posted in a conspicuous place for all prospective customers to ...