By Vince Mancuso, Storage.com
As recent Jacksonville housing market trends point to more residents moving into the urban area, opting for smaller apartments, demand for self storage in Jacksonville, Fla., seems to be at an all-time high.
Residents in Jacksonville use storage for many different reasons. College students at University of North Florida and Jacksonville University keep dorm furniture in Jacksonville storage units near their respective campuses over summer breaks. Boating and camping enthusiasts keep recreational vehicles at storage facilities close to their favorite outdoor destinations. Even military personnel at Naval Air Station Jacksonville use storage while deployed or temporarily stationed at another base so they don’t have to move all of their belongings back and forth between homes.
For apartment and condo renters in Downtown Jacksonville, however, using self storage means the ability to live in smaller yet trendy downtown living spaces without having to downsize possessions. This is especially convenient for current Jacksonville residents looking to make the move from the suburbs into the downtown area, which trends suggest is becoming more common.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the downtown living trend is spreading across the entire country with more than 150 new high-rise apartments set to be completed by the end of 2015. While the WSJ report states that a portion of this growth across the nation is due to empty nesters looking to downsize, Jill Marquez, a Realtor at Watson Realty Corp., believes that Downtown Jacksonville is attracting more young professionals because of the opportunities for work and play.
“There is a definite trend of residents wanting to live in the Downtown Jacksonville area—especially among young, college, and professional residents,” Marquez says.
Despite the ever-increasing cost of living and impermanence of rented property, young professionals are opting for the downtown lifestyle over houses in the suburbs. Why? Marquez adds, “The downtown area now offers many fine restaurants, cafes, bookstores, parks, museums, night clubs, and boutiques all within walking distance to the new and renovated condos, trendy lofts, and apartments.”
Interestingly enough, as these residents decide to “go small” by renting apartments and condos, they turn to mini storage in Downtown Jacksonville to store items they can’t fit into their smaller living spaces, such as sporting equipment and furniture.
In the downtown area, self storage occupancy rates are sitting right around 75%. Just outside of the downtown area, many facilities are seeing occupancy rates that exceed 90%.
The popularity of this option correlates to the increasing demand for storage facilities in Downtown Jacksonville. According to our data, storage facilities located near the downtown area within the 32204 zip code have a 75.3 percent occupancy rate so far in 2014. Additionally, Jacksonville mini storage locations in zip codes across the city have seen consistent growth in storage occupancy since 2012, with more than half of the facilities seeing over 90 percent occupancy.
The growth in storage occupancy may also be due in part to a large population growth, as Jacksonville as a whole saw an 11.71 percent rise in population from 2000 to 2010.
“Population growth always stimulates the need [for] storage facilities,” says Rich Martin, property manager with Morgran Mini Storage. “All of our occupancy has been up over the last year.”
Although Martin feels the downtown development has not necessarily increased unit occupancy, our data shows Jacksonville rentals made through Storage.com have already reached 66 percent of total rentals made in 2013.
Martin manages the Southside Mini Storage location at 3700 Southside Blvd., roughly seven miles outside of Downtown Jacksonville in the Southside area. The other two Morgran locations—Lakewood Mini and Morgran Mini Warehouses—also fall within this distance from the downtown area. Most of his location’s customers who aren’t Southside locals are Navy servicemen and women. Martin adds that these servicemen and women often choose Morgran locations due to cheaper rates not found in the Downtown Jacksonville storage facilities.
And it’s true. With storage units in Downtown Jacksonville, the convenience of proximity comes at a greater price. For roughly 105 square-feet of storage space, the rental cost averages around $135.15 per month. Those willing to drive a little more than five miles outside of Downtown Jacksonville, however, can save money by looking for storage locations in the 32216 zip code, where the average rate for a unit of the same size is $126.65 per month.
Storing just a few miles outside of the city can reduce monthly rent, but make sure to consider what you will be using the storage unit for and how often you will need to access it before making a decision.
The greater the distance from the downtown area, the more space storage renters can get for better rates. For example, traveling roughly eight miles from the downtown area to the 32210 zip code can save customers nearly $40 a month with an average rate of $97. That being said, Jacksonville self storage facilities with cheaper rates fill quickly, as is obvious by the 96.65 occupancy rate for facilities in this particular zip code.
Storage facilities ten miles outside of the downtown area in the 32257 zip code provide 200-square-foot units for an average monthly rate of $119, but are also nearly full with an average 98.65 occupancy rate.
While our data clearly shows a parallel between distance and average monthly rate savings, as well as average monthly savings and occupancy rates, potential storage renters should consider how frequently they’ll need to access the items in their Jacksonville storage unit when calculating overall savings.
For instance, current gas prices in Jacksonville range from $3.45 to $3.55 per gallon. Should someone drive ten miles to their Jacksonville mini storage facility—a 20-mile round-trip—three times a week in a car that gets 20 miles per gallon, they actually spend an additional $41 to $42 a month, rendering any savings with a lower-cost storage rental moot. This makes the option of storing items outside of the city a viable option only for those who plan on storing items that they will not need constant access to.
As for residents who currently live in Downtown Jacksonville and those looking to move into the area, a storage unit in Downtown Jacksonville is often worth the extra price. With convenient access that doesn’t require a long drive in traffic to get to the outskirts of the city and the ability to keep items that might have otherwise been sold due to the smaller living space, a self storage unit is definitely something to consider.
