Self Storage Prices Rise 1.5% Year-Over-Year in September, Even as Monthly Rates Drift

The national market settled into a measured pace in September, with the average street rate across U.S. self storage properties at $136 — a modest 0.7% decline from August’s $137, but still 1.5% higher than in September 2024.

The average rent per square foot held steady at $1.14, showing 1.8% growth year over year. The drop from August reflects seasonal factors and competitive pressure, but the year-over-year gain shows that the market has not lost its footing.

Most operators are not in freefall — but neither is anything running away. Out of the top 150 metros, 71% saw price increases. That touches on the unevenness beneath the national average — in many places, performance is very local.

Many of the most volatile markets this month sit in the South or Southeast, especially Florida and Louisiana. Sun Belt metros remain central to supply and demand dynamics. St. Petersburg, Port St. Lucie, New Orleans, and Shreveport all reflect how local fundamentals — population growth, land scarcity, or constrained new supply — can buck national direction.

At the same time, southern and southeastern markets account for a significant share of metros where rates are sliding. Fayetteville, NC, and Cape Coral, FL, show the dual trend: strong development momentum giving way to more affordable self storage rents.

Markets with the steepest rent drops

A few surprises show up among the cities with the biggest rate drops. Take Spring Valley, NV — it’s seeing the steepest fall at 8%, even though space there is scarce. The area has just 0.7 square feet of storage per person, compared to 7 nationally. Still, prices average $144, higher than the national $136. The catch? Las Vegas, right next door, rents for about $132. With cheaper options only minutes away, owners in Spring Valley have lowered rates to keep customers. After several years of sharp increases, this looks less like trouble and more like prices finally finding their balance.

Meanwhile, Ontario, CA, has seen rents dip about 6%, mostly because it’s caught in the middle of a crowded neighborhood of new storage facilities. Here, too, the city itself doesn’t have much space per person — just 2.4 square feet. Yet nearby Riverside is inching toward 6 square feet per capita while chasing the same renters. With Ontario’s prices already around the national average at $136, operators don’t have much wiggle room, especially when you add in that Southern California sees fewer relocations and tighter budgets.

Storage rents have also fallen about 6% over the past year in Fayetteville, NC, as the market adjusts to a period of strong building activity. The city has roughly 12.4 square feet of storage per person, far above the national average, so there’s plenty of space to go around. After adding more than 320,000 square feet of new storage in 2024, competition has picked up among operators, leading to lower prices — the lowest in the top 10 ($106).

Salt Lake City’s 5% rent dip is a healthy sign of balance returning to the market. With slower move-ins and higher living costs, lower rates are helping facilities stay full while making storage more affordable for residents. It’s a natural rebalancing: after years of brisk building and solid rent gains, Salt Lake’s storage market is finding its footing in a steadier, more sustainable phase.

Cape Coral’s storage rents have edged down about 4% over the past year, a sign the market is catching its breath after a stretch of rapid growth. Roughly 70,000 square feet of new space opened in 2024, adding fresh competition to a city now well supplied at about 7.9 square feet per person. With more options on the map and steady population growth — up nearly 16% in five years — operators are fine-tuning prices to keep occupancy strong.

Jersey City’s storage rents have also eased about 4% from last year, a small dip that comes after several years of steep pricing. With only 1.2 square feet of storage per person, space is tight, but operators are finding they still need to fine-tune rates to stay competitive in a dense, high-cost market.

Markets still bucking the trend

Several cities across the country are bucking the national cooling trend in self storage, posting solid year-over-year rent gains driven by tight supply, steady population growth, and shifting local demand.

Shreveport, LA, sits firmly at the top of the list, with street rates surging nearly 50% year over year to about $91 a month. That’s a dramatic shift for a city with 12.4 square feet of storage per person, one of the highest levels of supply in the country. Yet economic recovery, small-business expansion, and renewed consumer confidence have reignited demand. Even older facilities that once struggled to fill units are now tightening — proof that rising occupancy can spark pricing momentum even in a well-stocked market.

A few hundred miles east, Montgomery, AL, tells a similar story with its own twist. Average rents have climbed 35% year over year to about $67, even though the city boasts 15.7 square feet per person, the largest storage footprint among major U.S. markets. Construction has paused, but mobility hasn’t — families downsizing, renters in transition, and small businesses needing overflow space have soaked up capacity. With more than 100,000 square feet of new space forecast for 2025, operators appear confident that the demand surge isn’t temporary.

Far to the north, Boston, MA, shows what happens when supply simply can’t keep up. With just 0.7 square feet of storage per person, space here is nearly impossible to find, pushing average rents up 16% to around $253 per month — the highest of any major market. Even a small dip from August doesn’t soften the picture: in a city of tight housing, constant turnover, and limited development land, every available unit rents almost instantly.

Down the coast, St. Petersburg, FL, continues its impressive climb, with prices rising about 15% to $172. Demand remains brisk among retirees, remote workers, and small-business owners drawn to the area’s lifestyle and population boom. With roughly 5.9 square feet per person and no new projects in the pipeline, competition among tenants has kept pricing power squarely in operators’ hands.

Just to the southeast, Port St. Lucie, FL, rounds out the top five with an 11% annual rent increase, bringing the city’s average rate to $140. Supply sits near 6.4 square feet per person, but a steady influx of residents and limited new construction continue to tighten the balance. After delivering 150,000 square feet in 2024, developers expect another 200,000-plus in 2025, though demand still appears strong enough to absorb it without eroding prices.

Tightening pipeline: Development slows

A handful of major metros are gearing up for significant self storage growth in 2025, led by markets where population gains, urban density, and steady business activity keep demand humming.

Las Vegas, NV, is gearing up for another wave of building, with about 831,700 square feet of new storage expected in 2025 — roughly 6% of what’s already on the ground. That’s no small feat in a city already holding 7.9 square feet per person. The demand keeps coming from new residents, small businesses, and a steady churn of people moving in and out of the metro. Developers are keeping pace with that rhythm, confident that Las Vegas’s mix of growth and transience will keep units filling fast.

Top Cities for 2025 Construction

Farther West, Los Angeles, CA, is finally seeing a burst of long-awaited supply, with about 758,000 square feet set to open — around 10% of its total inventory. For a metro with just 2.1 square feet per person, this pipeline hardly scratches the surface of what’s needed. Years of tight zoning and high costs have stifled building, while demand from renters, movers, and small businesses has only grown. The new projects landing now are chasing a market that’s been undersupplied for more than a decade.

San Antonio, TX, continues to grow on all fronts, and storage is no exception. Roughly 730,000 square feet of new facilities — about 4% of the city’s inventory — are slated for 2025. With 9.4 square feet per person, there’s already plenty of space, but steady population gains and a robust job market keep it in use. Developers are spreading new projects across fast-growing suburbs and military-adjacent areas where move-ins never seem to slow.

Meanwhile, Houston, TX, is adding about 627,000 square feet of new storage next year — only 2% of its vast base, but enough to keep the country’s fourth-largest metro humming. Its 6.9 square feet per person put it near the national norm, yet the city’s size and sprawl create pockets where demand stays strong. Builders are focusing on neighborhoods seeing new housing or warehouse expansion rather than blanketing the map as they once did.

New York, NY, is getting a modest 602,000 square feet of new storage in 2025 — around 3% of its inventory — but every bit counts. With just 2.1 square feet per person, the city remains chronically short on space. High land costs and strict zoning keep construction rare, even as dense housing and small businesses constantly need extra room. Each project that makes it through approval adds valuable breathing space in one of the most storage-starved markets in the country.

Conclusion

September’s performance shows the self storage market is not surrendering growth. Year over year, pricing moved upward — even though month to month, a modest decline crept in. The gains are fragmented, held by markets with defensible barriers to supply or ongoing demand strength.

Methodology

This analysis was conducted by RentCafe Self Storage, an online platform offering nationwide listings for apartments and storage units.

This report considers self storage rents and forecasted construction for 2025 based on September 2025 data.

The report features the 150 most populous cities that have a self storage inventory of at least 10 units. The self storage street rate is calculated as the weighted averages of the street rates for all storage unit sizes, including both non-climate-controlled and climate-controlled units included.

For data on population changes, we turned to the U.S. Census (2018–2023 dataset).

Data on self storage street rates, deliveries and 2024 forecasted construction activity came from our sister division Yardi Matrix, a business development and asset management tool for brokers, sponsors, banks and equity sources underwriting investments in the multifamily, office, industrial and self storage sectors.

Fair use and distribution

This study is intended as a resource for the general public on topics of common interest and should not be considered investment advice. The data presented is accurate to the best of our knowledge, based on thorough and good-faith research, but may change due to external factors.

We permit the distribution of this content, provided that proper attribution is given to “RentCafe Self Storage” with a link back to the research study.

Want to explore how this trend has developed over time? Check out our previous reports for historical data and insights on the topic:

August 2025 Self Storage Report: Self Storage Records Second Month Of Rent Stabilization, as 63% of Major Cities Post Street Rate Growth
July 2025 Self Storage Report: National Rates Flat, Sun Belt Prices Still Sliding Amid Supply Surge
May 2025 Marks Turning Point for Self Storage Rates After Years of Corrections
Self Storage Rates Stabilize, Registering Only a Mild 0.7% Decrease in April
Self Storage Rates Begin to Level Off in March After Steep February Drop