Update 6/17/16 – Stor-Age has begun a new development in Essexwold, near Johannesburg, while it continues work on three previously announced new-construction projects and expansion of two other facilities near Cape Town. The expansion projects will add about 5,500 square meters of space to the company’s portfolio and are expected to be complete in January, according to the source.

The ground-up projects will feature multi-story structures designed to complement the architectural aesthetics of the buildings around them, according to a Stor-Age press release. “These and other developments reflect our commitment to building a portfolio of high quality self-storage assets,” Lucas said. “We have always operated at the quality end of the market and will not grow for the sake of growth alone.”

The company’s mid-range growth strategy includes the acquisition of existing self-storage properties in addition to new development projects and the expansion of existing assets, according to the release.

The announcements were made in context with an earnings release. Stor-Age rental income totaled R54.9 million, which was 3 percent higher than forecast. Occupancy across the portfolio increased to 86 percent from 82.7 percent.

The company’s operating performance has mirrored the results of self-storage real estate investment trusts (REITs) worldwide, according to Lucas. “In first-world markets such as Australia, the [United Kingdom] and the [United States], self-storage REITs have consistently outperformed property-sector indices and ranked at the top end of their respective markets,” he said. Self-storage remains “an unexplored market with explosive growth potential in emerging economies” like South Africa, company officials added.

The earnings report was the company’s first since becoming South Africa’s first self-storage REIT listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange last fall.

2/1/16 – Stor-Age Property REIT Ltd., which operates 37 self-storage facilities in South Africa, is developing three new properties in Durban and Johannesburg, South Africa. Each will have multiple stories and be similar in style to the company’s existing sites.

Stor-Age Sunninghill will be the operator’s first property in Johannesburg’s northern suburbs and is considered a flagship property, according to the source. Stor-Age Randburg, also in Johannesburg, is near an established business, residential and retail corridor. Both properties are near main highways. Stor-Age Berea in Durban includes the conversion of an existing four-story building to self-storage.

In addition to new development, Stor-Age reported it had strong demand for its services in the last quarter of 2015. The company experienced 8 percent growth in customer inquiries year-over-year, according to CEO Gavin Lucas.

“People need storage space in both strong and weak economies as they move and/or downsize,” he said, adding the company’s growth is supported by a well-planned balance sheet. “We anticipated higher interest rates, and so took on lower debt levels on listing relative to our peers. This has resulted in a conservative balance sheet with a debt-to-property asset ratio of only10 percent and 80 percent of debt hedged against further interest rate hikes for three years.”

Stor-Age became South Africa’s first self-storage real estate investment trust listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in November. Headquartered in Cape Town, it operates self-storage facilities in six South African cities. Established in 2006 by the Lucas family, it is the operator appointed by Stor-Age Property Fund Managers Pty. Ltd. to manage and market the property portfolio owned by Stor-Age Property Holdings Pty. Ltd.

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