Barings, Canvass Capital Form $250M Storage JV
Barrings has already closed on three storage assets north of Charlotte, N.C.
Barings has formed a joint venture with Canvass Capital LLC, planning to invest $250 million in self storage assets in the next years. The partnership has acquired three storage facilities, totaling 1,129 units north of Charlotte, N.C., and a 3.8-acre site in Hilton Head, S.C., for a 1,231-unit storage development, set to break ground this fall.
The three recently acquired properties span 16 acres and encompass multiple buildings totaling 163,000 rentable square feet. One of the properties, located at 12421 Sam Neely Road, comprises some 80,185 square feet of both non-climate and climate-controlled units, ranging from 25 to 324 square feet and covered parking. The planned development in Hilton Head, S.C., will include two buildings with more than 150,000 rentable square feet.
The joint venture plans to add climate-controlled buildings, covered RV and boat parking and technological enhancements to the existing buildings. As part of Barings’ sustainability initiatives, the firm will also add ESG-specific features, as well as solar panels and energy-efficient improvements to the facilities.
The Lake Normal properties and Hilton Head project represent Barings’ first storage investments in the Eastern U.S. The firm has also identified some assets in the Southeast, that will be closed soon, with value-add, expansion and ground-up development potential, mentioned Head of U.S. Real Estate Equity of Barings John Ockerbloom in a prepared statement.
Self storage market remains resilient
Self storage street rate growth has slowed after a rapid increase in the last year, but are expected to accelerate again due to seasonal growth. Charlotte is one of the largely penetrated storage markets, offering residents more than 8.5 net square feet per capita, above the 7.1 national average. Year-over-year, the metro recorded double-digit increases as of March, with rents up 10 percent for 10×10 non-climate-controlled units and 11 percent for 10×10 climate-controlled units year-over-year, a recent Yardi Matrix report shows.
At the beginning of the year, another self storage facility traded in Charlotte. A partnership between Abacus Capital, WDM Family Enterprises and Big Cypress Capital sold the 117,405-square-foot asset to KKR for $21.8 million.