StoreEase Inc., which operates self-storage facilities and offers an online third-party management platform, has sold a nine-property portfolio across multiple states to Liberty Investment Properties, which operates the My Neighborhood Storage Center brand. Largely comprised of recently constructed assets, the portfolio totals 515,000 rentable square feet, according to a press release.

“This sale is a harbinger of the future flow of investment across all markets within a highly fragmented self-storage industry and an important milestone for the paradigm shift to virtually managed properties,” said Josh Boyd, CEO of StoreEase. “We see opportunity over the next 10 years for massive consolidation within the industry via a lower-cost operational model.”

The two companies also formed a strategic partnership under which Liberty President Adam Mikkelson will join the StoreEase board as an adviser to the company’s virtual-management model.

“I have had the opportunity to see the self-storage industry evolve through my family’s generational involvement,” Mikkelson said. “I’m excited to launch Liberty’s growth plan, beginning with this portfolio of properties located in strong markets. The virtual operational model allows us to differentiate our product and can be applied in top MSAs [metropolitan statistical areas], secondary and tertiary markets. The self-storage operational model is ripe for change, and we believe StoreEase will be an accelerator to a market shift in the industry.”

Last month, StoreEase announced it had received a seed investment led by New York-based investment-management firm Bienville Capital Management LLC, which will be used to expand its virtual offering and launch a software-as-a-service model later this year. StoreEase also has added a San Francisco-based technology team, including a chief technology officer, vice president of product and vice president of engineering, to advance its platform capabilities, the release stated.

Headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, StoreEase acquires, develops and oversees self-storage facilities. It operates 28 properties in eight states and expects to add up to 75 locations this year. Its virtual-management platform offers tools to automate self-storage operations including 2 Minute Move-In, DemoSuites, Smart Environment, Virtual Assistant, Virtual Counter, Virtual Manager and Virtual Terminals.

Founded in 1990 and based in Orlando, Florida, Liberty is a privately held real estate investment, development and management firm focused on income-producing assets and related equity and debt investments on behalf of individual and institutional investors. Prior to the StoreEase portfolio acquisition, it operated five My Neighborhood Storage Center facilities in Florida and North Carolina.