Question for the hive mind I'm looking for opinions on. Storage unit owner / operator here with 15K sqft under roof, 51 units, and 20ish RV parking spaces. Gated facility, plenty of cameras and exterior lighting, never a security issue.

We've been a 24 hour access facility for the duration of my 3ish years of ownership of the property. Property is located in an industrial park in a town of 137K, about .3 of a mile off a I-24 30 minutes south of Nashville. Not much activity after dark.

I'm buddies with quite a few members of my local SO, and within the past 60-90 days they've let me know about several break ins of storage unit complexes in the local AO.

All happened at night, because as our mother's all told us nothing good happens after midnight.

So, the question posed is, as a former, prospective, or currant tenant of a self storage facility, how important is 24 hour access to you?

Would you value the security aspect of a facility that only allowed access from say 6AM-10PM, dawn to dusk, etc? Or would you find this to be an inconvenience that leads you to choose another property that allows 24 hour access?

Opinions welcomed.

I've rented storage units several times in the last 5 years. None had 24hr access. Not a problem for me.

5a-11p would probably cover anything I'd ever use a storage unit for.

I had a large rental unit in Alabama.While i did have 24 hour access that was not an important factor.

I've rented a few and 24 hour was never something that mattered to me. If it's in storage it's not something I need in a hurry. I kept a classic car in one and it was always a day or 2 in advance I'd know I'd want it.

In typical arfcom fashion, I would want both.

I would be happy with limited access to conventional storage, (basically what you are talking about).

I would like, (but currently don't enjoy), access to a 24/7 facility for small stuff.  (basically a safety deposit box).  This option probably doesn't exist outside of Las Vegas or Hollywood, however.  Then there is the problem of gov't intrusion.

So, I would say that limited access would suit me.  I would not pay a premium for 24 hour access on bulk storage.

I rented one. They shifted from 24/7 to 7AM to 10pm or something close. Had no impact on me.

The one I rent is open from 6AM-10PM 7 days a week.  I'd prefer it if it were 5AM-10PM.

It's storage for me, there's no emergency items there.

Everyone storage unit I had was from roughly 6AM to 9PM with automated gates.

No impact on what I was doing at that time in my life, just had to plan ahead for certain things.

I've only rented them for seasonal storage, so being able to get to it at odd hours was never a concern. I'd rather know my stuff was secure than have access 24/7.

I was generally using them to store motorcycles/parts.

DOD, we moved a lot and used storage units for 30 years on and off.
Ive had two units cleaned out by thieves.
Limited hours with on-site manager is my preferred.

The single most important factor for me is proximity of storage to my residence. Has to be close.

I have a storage unit for work related items, I am often there between 4 and 5 am. Lack of access in the early morning hours would be a deal breaker for me.

Appreciate the insight offered by all. I'm leaning towards the direction of hours restrictions, but haven't quite nailed down the times yet.

I don't intend to charge a premium for 24/7 access, but I could see a few use cases where allowing it to specific tenants that had a reasonable request would be acceptable, specifically to outside parking.

(Rentals leased to a business, contractor with a stored gooseneck trailer for equipment, guy who stores a boat and gets off the lake after dark, etc.)

24 hour access didn’t matter to me, but I was just storing furniture between moves and house construction.

I’d imagine reasonable hours like 6 am to 9 pm would be acceptable to most. Just make that very clear up front.

As an LEO that investigated a more than a few of these, and also recovered stolen items which were stored at some storage units, I am wondering why you feel controlling access will make a large difference if you don’t have someone on site 24 hrs.  

Cutting thru a fence is relatively easy.  Hell cutting thru a wall is relatively easy.  We had plenty of metal buildings that were secure that were cut into.  

Climbing a fence, breaking open the gate control box, and flipping the gate over ride switch is easy.  Not a lot to dissuade someone.  Having it alarmed between certain hours, so if it does open it goes off, would help though.  

If you think that tenants are going to let in their scumbag friends, then do not issue codes, instead issue access cards to control them.  Shut them off ASAP if stolen or they quit paying.

Put up obvious cameras.  And put up hidden cameras as well.  
Put up a lot or razor wire over the fence if legal.  
Add alarm options if you do restrict hours.  

Reality is that plenty of thefts happen during the daytime.  Most residential burglaries in fact are daytime.  

Storage units by their very nature are kind of ripe for the pickings: nobody knows who is supposed to be there or not, they cannot tell the difference between a theft in progress and a legit person clearing out their unit.  So nobody ever calls anything in until the actual owner finds out they were burglarized.  

In my opinion the best ones have on site management living in an apartment over the office.  But I took plenty of reports of thefts from that place as well.  

Maybe a good approach would be to require, or just issue, a serious lock that makes it tough to use a bolt cutter.  Someone using power tools will attract attention at least.  

Good luck.  Hope something was useful.

I rented one that closed at 10PM.  I had to run and get some tools around 9:30pm for a job that came up the next day.  I just missed the cutoff leaving and the front gate would not open.  I called all the phone numbers on the rental paperwork, no answer.  After waiting for about an hour for a call back, I took the front gate apart enough to open it(after all, I had all my tools), pulled my truck out, ran back to the storage place, put the gate all back together, and prayed the cops weren't going to show up in the middle of something that looked very bad, jumped backed over the gate after shuffling my tools through it, and running back to my truck.  I'd have loved to see that cam footage on the news.  "Guy breaks out of storage unit, but repairs gate before he leaves."

I never did get a call back and had many interactions with the front people and nobody said a word.  I won't rent a place that I don't have access to my stuff 24/7 anymore.

I've owned a storage facility for 21 years.  We have always been 24/7 access. We have only had a couple of break ins and they were at night of course. But they either jumped the fence or cut the chain on the gate operator so not having 24/7 access for customers would not have made a difference.

I have rented units a few times over the years, probably 5 different units for a few months at 5 different places.

1) I didn't even look for 24hr access, it would not have made a difference to me.

2) if a placed changes from 24/7 to a specific time frame I wouldn't care and would be glad they're being proactive to protect my stuff.

3) this decision only really matters if your units are in an enclosed building otherwise they will just cut or jump the fence (like posted above).

The storage place I rent from locks the gate at 10PM. I’ve never had the need to get to my storage unit after 10, so it’s never been a problem for me.

It's only going to be a problem for the few people that want it.

I keep a storage unit for shit I rarely need, and am holding for mostly sentimental reasons. There’s nothing there I need 24 hour access to...

I have a storage unit and they aren't open 24/7.  This is no issue at all, as i only go during the day.  If you don't offer it and someone wants it, they can go somewhere else...

While we don't have someone on the property 24/7, and I don't think controlling access will completely eliminate any possible threat, I think customers will appreciate proactive measures to heighten security, and it doesn't seem like it will affect or inconvenience most people.

We've got a good relationship with local LEO, and they routinely cruise the lot after dark with their own access code. With gate hours in place, it would be simple to let them know "anybody in here after 11PM shouldn't be in here".

We issue disc locks that are pretty hard to cut through (had to do it a few times) but nothing's invincible. Access cards are a good idea and something I'll start to employ. We're already setup with keypads that are RFID capable, and I've noticed a few incidences of 5 or 6 different individuals accessing a unit at different times. Gate codes are easy to give out to anybody, but a single RFID card at least makes it inconvenient for multiple people to share a unit.

Again I appreciate the insight offered by all.

Rented at several different sights.
None had 24 hr. access and had coded gates.

It's not like a 7-11 that needs to cater to the midnight munchies crowd.

Rented one for storage of business records. I've never had a crisis where I really, really needed a 10 year old invoice at 3AM.

It was a 24-hour place, but daytime access was fine for us. We did sometimes need to access it on the weekends, but it was still daytime.

I just rented one in Clarksville and I think it’s closed at 10pm.  Works fine for me and is probably more secure.

I've rented a few in Murfreesboro. I'd prefer to have 24/7 access to my possessions.

Review your access logs and see how many people and in what sort of frequency use what would be considered after hours access. Then directly communicate with them what and why to see if it affects them. An option maybe, but at least see how much it’s actually used during those times.

I had a storage unit when I first moved to the Boro years ago off New Salem Hwy.

There's a decent crew here in middle TN, we may have to throw something together on the HTF.

It amazes me how popular these things are. There are tons here and the are building more like crazy. I think they are stupid. People move their crap in and then wind up renting it for years or decades. Build or buy a damn shed at your house so you are not paying for eternity and you don’t have to travel to go get your shit.

Now in certain circumstances yes they make sense. I rented one while in college to store my shit for the summer but virtually everyone I know that has one has had it for years.

As to the hours I think 24 hour is fairly important. Many people using them while moving in or out often work crazy hours.

Limited hours with on-site manager is also my preferred.  I figure this keeps the meth head type activity to a minimum.

I used to live in a neighborhood off New Salem. One county over now but I'd be down.

I can't disagree. I'm at 100% occupancy and I'd confidently say 90% of those units are filled with useless, yet organized junk. People will spend an entire Saturday afternoon playing Tetris packing 250sqft of unit to the brim. I love too see it....

I've got 15 customers that have been with me since the opening of our newest building in July '19, and my longest customer is one I inherited with my purchase of the original building.

He's been with the property since it's original construction in 2001, at an average monthly rate of $100.....for twenty years.

Have rented and now own a storage unit. As long as it's 7 days a week, I never needed 24/7 access. I once rented at a place that was completely closed on Sundays and only opened until noon on Saturdays, what a joke! 6am-9pm or 10pm is more than reasonable, you can plan your visits.

My storage business is fully indoors and air conditioned and use key pads for building and gate access. We open 6am-9pm 7 days a week. We can also let someone in remotely if necessary, like the alarm company or police/fire department in case of an emergency.

There were times when I was at work during the entirety of my storage units hours or I decided to take a spur of the moment trip and didn't have access to my gear. I'd love to have 24 hour access but I understand the problems with it.

I guess it would not be the end of the world to have 24 hour access, but I do like accessing my storage unit early in the morning. I would want to be able to get in there by 4 at the latest.

I'd like 24hour access but I definitely would compromise on that to ensure my stuff was not broken into and stolen.