Online Auctions and Collections | Gabfocus | Self Storage Virtual Workshop

Gabfocus Sessions

Gabfocus Sessions are virtual workshops for self storage owners, managers, and operators. Brought to you by the team behind Gabfest: StoragePug and MR Management.

Each session features hand-picked industry pros who will dive deep into relevant topics surrounding our industry, share best practices, and explore trends in the market. It's our hope that these sessions help you navigate your self storage business better during these uncertain times.

Want more tools for your managers? Join us on Gabfocus weekly on Thursdays.

Top Questions Answered in this session

How are people handling collections during COVID-19? Has anything changed?
Are there any tips to getting tenants to pay consistently?
How do I make sure I’m following proper procedures with lien sales?
What are the pros and cons of in-person versus online auctions?
What are the most common issues that come up with online auctions?
How do I get better results with my auctions?

These are just a few of the questions answered during this session! Get your pen and paper ready!

Alonna Ross

Manager StorageAuctions.com

Website: https://www.storageauctions.com
Email: alonna@storageauctions.com

pete-whittingslow

Pete Whittingslow

Director of Sales & Operations StorageAuctions.com

Website: https://www.storageauctions.com
Email: pete@storageauctions.com

Resources from this session

Awesome Quotes

“Being diligent as a manager is key. You’ve gotta stick to your guns! If you keep letting your tenants pay late with no late fees, they will take you for granted” - Alonna Ross

"Stop waiving late fees! Stop doing it! No other industry waives late fees.” - Melissa Huff

"Take a picture where bidders can see the dust. Bidders love seeing that because they can see it hasn't been tampered with and the unit has been left for awhile." - Pete Whittingslow

"You get in a lot of trouble if you open up that conversation of waiving late fees for one tenant and not another, that is not a situation you want to be in.” - Pete Whittingslow

"Whenever I come across customers in different markets that are really pushing autopay, they are at a much higher percentage of paying on time and fewer delinquencies.” - Pete Whittingslow

“Having a text message sent to your tenants with the payment link is a game-changer.” - Melissa Huff

Resources Mentioned

Find your States Lien Laws

StorageAuctions.com

Self Storage Auctions

Storage Treasures

Question of the Week

We asked our panelists: What’s the most important thing an auction needs to go smoothly?

“Clarity. Be perfectly clear on your photos and perfectly clear on your instructions." - Alonna Ross

“Have good notes. I do not want to see an auction on a unit that has no notes on it." - Melissa Huff

"Legal compliance. Everyone wants a $1000 unit, but the broken mattress and one bicycle wheel won't get you there. Having all the legal steps in place makes things go smoothly." - Pete Whittingslow

Gabfocus Takeaway

In light of the current ramifications due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person storage auctions have taken a significant hit. Moving your storage auctions to an online format is the easiest way to handle the lien sale. Make sure to check out your state's lien laws as many have been recently updated to ensure you are following the necessary procedures to auction off your storage units.