- SmartStop announced roughly $140M of strategic investments spanning Canada and two core US markets.
- A Canadian joint venture covers 14 properties with 961K rentable SF and about 9,600 units.
- The REIT raised 2026 same-store revenue, NOI and adjusted FFO-per-share guidance.
SmartStop Self Storage REIT is expanding its North American platform through a mix of acquisitions and structured investments. The company’s investor relations release outlines roughly $140M of strategic investments across Canada and the US. The program includes a Canadian joint venture, two wholly owned US acquisitions and a new investment partnership.
SmartStop said the transactions should be modestly accretive to adjusted FFO per share in 2026 and add about $0.05 to $0.06 per share in 2027. The company said the investments add 25 Class A properties across different structures and should improve clustering in core markets. SmartStop also linked the program to its broader Deca Initiative and its push into third-party management.
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Canada Becomes a Larger Growth Platform
SmartStop agreed to invest about CAD $74M, or roughly USD $54M, into Strategic Storage Canada. The joint venture fund owns 14 self-storage properties totaling about 961K rentable SF and 9,600 units. The portfolio is in early lease-up and about 50% physically occupied.
The investment gives SmartStop a 50% general-partner interest and about a 34% limited-partner interest. It includes CAD $25M of convertible preferred equity with a 6.5% coupon. SmartStop also has the opportunity to invest up to another CAD $228M over the next few years.
The deal would position SmartStop as Canada’s third-largest storage operator with 70 operating properties. It expands existing exposure in Vancouver, Calgary and Greater Toronto. It also adds Halifax and Quebec City to the platform. SmartStop will provide property management under five-year contracts and receive a right of first offer on fund properties. It also received third-party management contracts for three additional Canadian properties outside the fund. The company expects the portfolio to reach a stabilized yield above 6% as occupancy increases.
The Details
In the US, SmartStop expects to buy stabilized facilities in Las Vegas and Asheville for about $37M. Together, the properties contain more than 186K rentable SF and roughly 1,600 units. The Las Vegas acquisition would become SmartStop’s 10th wholly owned asset in that metro.
SmartStop and AXCS Capital also formed a programmatic relationship with a Class A self-storage developer. One preferred investment closed in September with a $13.2M net investment from SmartStop. The venture expects five more preferred-equity or mezzanine investments by the end of the fourth quarter. SmartStop’s net investment in those deals is expected at about $35M to $40M. The investments target mid-teens yields and average maturities near five years.
To fund growth while keeping leverage neutral, SmartStop priced about 2.4M forward equity shares at an average $32.01. Gross proceeds could reach roughly $78M. The development sponsor behind the new programmatic relationship has nearly 50 properties totaling more than 4M rentable SF. SmartStop expects a right of first offer on the initial six assets and property-management agreements. That structure gives the REIT exposure to future deals without requiring every asset to be purchased outright.
Canadian activity also benefits from SmartStop’s CAD $200M Maple Bond offering. The bond closed on August 18, carries a 4.317% fixed rate and matures in 2031.
Why It Matters
The strategy combines geographic expansion with denser market clustering. Self-storage REIT performance is increasingly tied to operating scale in core markets. SmartStop is also starting an asset-management program to sell properties where it lacks enough density. Initial dispositions are targeted at $75M to $125M beginning in early 2027. Proceeds are intended for reinvestment in core markets.
The company said its same-store Canadian portfolio increased occupancy by about 75 basis points year over year through August 31. The new Canadian fund therefore adds early-lease-up assets to a platform where existing occupancy has been improving.
Management said clustering can improve shared staffing, marketing and revenue management across nearby properties. The disposition program is designed to reduce exposure where SmartStop owns only a handful of facilities. Capital can then be redeployed into markets where the company already has operating scale.
What’s Next
The Canadian transaction is subject to Competition Act approval and other customary closing conditions. SmartStop expects completion in the fourth quarter of 2026. The REIT also raised its 2026 same-store revenue growth range to 0.75% to 1.75%. Same-store NOI growth guidance increased to 1.15% to 2.15%. Adjusted FFO-per-share guidance moved up by $0.01 to a range of $1.99 to $2.05.
The next milestones are closing the Canadian investment, completing the US acquisitions and beginning planned noncore asset sales in 2027. The company also increased expected 2026 capital deployment for acquisitions, loans, bridge loans and preferred investments. The new range is $190M to $210M, up from $55M to $75M in its August assumptions. That shift captures how quickly the announced transactions expanded the year’s investment program.
