Self Storage Feasibility Study in New York

New York storage, thin against the nation

New York storage ranks high on national count and low within the state. SBA approved 60 loans in the class across FY2017 to FY2026, adding up to $70.8 million. The class sits 13 of 50 among the states yet only 20 of 39 inside New York, and the location quotient of 0.39x sits far below parity, so storage is a sliver of what New York borrowers use SBA for. A median of $763,000 comes to 0.82x the national median, with half of loans between $322,500 and $1.6 million.

Lenders and place

SBA 7(a) carried 47 loans and SBA 504 13, and franchises account for 1.7%. In 7(a), Live Oak Banking Company holds 19 loans for $30.8 million, while NBT Bank, National Association holds 6 for $1.4 million. For 504, Empire State Certified Development Corporation tops the list at 11 loans and $11.9 million. The counties are mostly upstate: Monroe County has 6 loans, Oneida and Ontario 5 each, Onondaga and Washington 4 each, then Orange, Schenectady, Suffolk and Sullivan with 3 each.

Years of change

Approvals peaked at 11 loans and $13.7 million in FY2022. FY2019 and FY2026 each show just 2 loans, worth $1.6 million and $1.3 million, and FY2024 had 4 worth $844,500. FY2018 produced $12.9 million from 7 loans.

Withdrawals and losses

At least 10.9% of approvals dated FY2017 through FY2024 were pulled before funding, or 12.7% counting unfunded loans as dropped. Across the 30 loans disbursed in the early window, nothing has been written off, whether measured to date or at the five-year mark. The group is just large enough to print a rate, but still a small base.

What the study has to test

A New York storage study has to test the trade area closely, since a low location quotient can mean either a thin market or an underserved one. Count existing rentable space per household, check street rates against nearby facilities, and look at zoning, snow and drainage costs for the particular site. Land cost relative to achievable rent per square foot is the hinge. Repayment should be tested at stabilised occupancy and at a slow lease-up, with the appraiser valuing net income after a management reserve. Recreational vehicle storage cannot be pulled apart from ordinary storage in this data.