180: How to Increase Efficiency and Upscale Value in Self-Storage Investments with Tom Dunkel

Zen and the Art of Real Estate Investing

Self-storage is one of the most passive asset classes in real estate, and when done correctly, it also requires little hands-on operation.

On this episode of Zen and the Art of Real Estate Investing, Jonathan interviews Tom Dunkel, Chief Investment Officer at Belrose Storage Group. Tom has more than 30 years of real estate finance and investing experience. He manages Belrose’s financial underwriting, playing a critical role in win-win deal structures that ensure achievable investor returns.

Jonathan and Tom dive into their conversation by exploring the three characteristics of self-storage as a passive investment, how Tom leverages technology to run these facilities efficiently, and what makes this asset class somewhat recession-proof. You’ll hear how more and more people are using self-storage for business use and flex space, Tom’s background in real estate, and what caused him to move toward real estate versus other investments despite his background in finance. Tom shares how experience teaches you what a good buy looks like, the differences between residential and commercial financing, what Tom looks for when buying a new facility, and the growing interest investors are showing in self-storage.

Self-storage is picking up steam as an investing option, and with Tom’s advice on choosing a property, this passive asset class could be the right one for you.

In this episode, you will hear:

• The three characteristics of self-storage as a passive investment
• Leveraging technology to run a self-storage facility efficiently
• Why self-storage is somewhat recession-proof
• Self-storage for commercial usage and flex space
• Tom Dunkel’s background in real estate
• Why Tom veered toward real estate versus other investments, even with a finance background
• The legalities of insider trading in real estate investing
• How experience teaches you what a good buy looks like
• The differences between financing in residential and commercial real estate
• Where Tom likes to buy and the demographics he looks for in a facility
• Growing interest from investors in self-storage

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If you enjoyed this episode, we've created a PDF that has all of the key information for you from the episode. Just go to the episode page at https://zenandtheartofrealestateinvesting.com/podcast/180/ to download it.

Supporting Resources:

Belrose Storage Group website - www.belrosestoragegroup.com

Find Belrose Storage Group on Facebook - www.facebook.com/belrosestoragegroup

Tom Dunkel on Instagram - www.instagram.com/dunkeltd

Connect with Tom on LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/tomdunkel

Belrose on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/belrosestoragegroup/

Belrose on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/belrose-storage-group/

Website - www.streamlined.properties

YouTube - www.youtube.com/c/JonathanGreeneRE/videos

Instagram - www.instagram.com/trustgreene

Instagram - www.instagram.com/streamlinedproperties

TikTok - www.tiktok.com/@trustgreene

Zillow - www.zillow.com/profile/StreamlinedReal

Bigger Pockets - www.biggerpockets.com/users/TrustGreene

Facebook - www.facebook.com/streamlinedproperties

Email - [e-mail]

Episode Credits

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