Joe DownsCEO & Co-Founder, Belrose Storage Group. Founder, Storage Moguls.

Use amenities to make rent increases feel earned

23 Apr 2026 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

1:06

In this instructional segment, the speaker outlines a communication strategy for property operators that pairs visible facility improvements with upcoming rent increases to make the price hike feel justified to tenants. By installing premium amenities—such as a high‑pressure air station or a freshwater rinse facility—before the fall move‑in season and then announcing the rate adjustment in the same communication, operators provide tenants with concrete context for the increase. The speaker provides a sample letter that combines the announcement of the new amenity with the new monthly rate of $185 effective October 1st, emphasizing that the investment makes the rate feel earned rather than extracted.

Chapters

We covered rate communication on day 33. Here's the amenity angle that makes the rate conversation easier. A rate increase implemented alongside a visible facility improvement is significantly easier to defend than one implemented in isolation. The tenant who received a letter saying your monthly rate is increasing to $185 effective October 1st and also saw a new rent station installed in August has context for the increase. The tenant who received only a letter Does not. This is the sequencing strategy that operators in this vertical use most effectively. Plan a premium driver improvement installed in late summer before the fall move-in season and announce the fall rate adjustment in the same communication. We've— something like this: we've installed a new high-pressure air station and fresh— Freshwater rinse facility this summer. As part of our continued investment in the facility, monthly rates for open-air spaces will be $185 Effective October 1st. That letter has 2 components: what you invested and what the rate will be. The investment makes the rate feel earned rather than extracted.