- Self-storage is emerging as a viable reuse strategy for underutilized office buildings, particularly in urban areas where conversions can avoid demolition costs.
- Falling office values and rising self-storage demand are fueling interest — the sector’s average sale price rose 31% YoY in Q1 2025.
- Developers like Tourbineau Real Estate Partners are building national pipelines for office-to-storage conversions, but viable projects remain rare and require community buy-in.
- Local zoning reforms and public benefit trade-offs — such as nonprofit space or ground-floor activation — are proving essential to getting approvals.
The office market continues to suffer from plunging valuations and chronic vacancies, reports Bisnow. In response, developers are exploring new reuse strategies, with self-storage gaining traction as a cost-effective option. In Raleigh, North Carolina, a former AT&T call center is being transformed into a self-storage facility instead of apartments or coworking. This trend could reshape how developers approach obsolete office space nationwide.
From Cubicles To Couches
Tourbineau Real Estate Partners is leading the charge. The firm’s Raleigh project is its first office-to-self-storage conversion, but with six more in the pipeline, it’s aiming to replicate the model across the country. Properties in San Francisco, Seattle, and Oklahoma City are already under contract, and others are planned in Silver Spring, Honolulu, and Sacramento.
The shift makes economic sense: office values have dropped 23% nationwide over the past three years, while demand for self-storage has surged. Nationwide, the average sale price for self-storage jumped 31% year-over-year in Q1, according to MSCI.
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Where It Works — And Why
Conversions typically make the most sense in dense, urban neighborhoods where existing buildings can be preserved. In suburban markets, demolitions are often more cost-effective, allowing developers to build from scratch. But either path only pencils out if the acquisition costs are rock bottom.
“There might be only one in a market every once in a while that actually could pencil,” said Tourbineau CIO Ben Wong.
Zoning Is King
The biggest barriers to these projects aren’t just structural — they’re political. Many urban communities don’t see self-storage as a vibrant use of space. In Silver Spring, Maryland, Tourbineau needed a zoning amendment to allow upper-floor storage, with the ground floor set aside for a nonprofit.
Tourbineau is making similar community-focused concessions in other cities: in Seattle, it will incorporate public art; in San Francisco, it’s offering ground-floor space to a local cultural group.
When Structure Supports Strategy
Even when zoning clears, many office buildings aren’t physically suited for storage. Self-storage requires high load-bearing floors and easy loading access. Only a handful of buildings naturally meet those needs, said BWDArchitects’ Rebekah Brown — “We call those diamonds.”
Why It Matters
With multifamily conversions facing high costs and entitlement hurdles, self-storage offers a more attainable fallback in select markets. Avison Young’s Joe French estimates that 5–7% of underused office stock could feasibly be converted to storage.
“We’ve got capital that is really convinced of the upside,” French said. “It’s a once-in-a-cycle opportunity.”
What’s Next
Expect more cities to weigh the trade-offs: accept a low-traffic self-storage facility or let a long-vacant office remain a drag on local streetscapes. If developers can offer creative public benefits, the self-storage conversion may become a repeatable model — even if it isn’t flashy.
