Finally!
U-Haul’s President and CEO Joe Shoen took a stand in opposition of the deplorable pricing practices most of the bigger REITs and institutional players use today, with the absolute worst being Extra Space in my opinion. I am talking about the bait and switch tactic of luring customers in with lower rates, then raising them exponentially knowing it is difficult for many customers to move.
U-Haul nationwide is declaring enough is enough, and offering a 12-month rent rate lock to new customers. This offer does or at least gives the impression of offering (which is desperately needed at this time) a fair price for what we provide as an industry. My experience is people want to be treated fairly by the companies they do business with.
This bait and switch, overused abusive dynamic pricing model not only gives our industry a bad reputation, it is not the right way to treat people. It is capitalism at its worst.
Besides that, it invites regulation, which we are already seeing show up in some states, and will soon be everywhere unless someone curtails the excesses of this practice we see today.
I am all about price increases, but come on, what I see being done is deplorable. I can talk from experience. Just to see and experience firsthand this practice, I have been renting a unit from Extra Space for 3 years now next to my office. I can’t count the number of increases I have had, and they will keep coming until I say uncle. My calculator informs me I have averaged a 24.1% price increase per year since I moved in, and that is mild compared to some people I have talked to with over 80% in a single 12-month period.
If there is ever a class action lawsuit in my state against U-Haul, you bet your tail I would join in. Here is some information of the lawsuit filed against Extra Space in New York on Feb. 10, 2026.
Commissioner Levine Seeks to Recover Full Restitution for Consumers and More Than $5 Million in Penalties From Self-Storage Company
NEW YORK, NY – Today the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) announced the filing of a landmark lawsuit against Extra Space (NYSE:EXR), a national publicly-traded self-storage company that operates approximately 60 locations across New York City. After reviewing more than 100 complaints, DCWP’s investigation found that Extra Space consistently fails to provide the quality of services it advertises and uses predatory practices that exploit consumers and violate NYC’s Consumer Protection Law. To address the company’s illegal bait-and-switch scheme, DCWP is seeking to hold the company accountable for its misconduct in New York by pursuing restitution for aggrieved consumers and civil penalties for thousands of violations of City law. This is the first lawsuit DCWP is bringing against a self-storage company.
“This lawsuit aims to shut down Extra Space’s deceptive bait-and-switch scheme, recover full restitution for consumers, and send a clear message to the self-storage industry that exploiting New Yorkers comes with serious consequences,” said DCWP Commissioner Sam Levine. “This Fee Free February and every month, false advertisements, hidden late fees, and other predatory practices are on our radar. The era of exploiting New Yorkers is over.”
“For too long, self-storage companies like Extra Space have used deceptive tactics to lure New Yorkers in with low introductory rates, only to jack up prices and hit them with hidden fees. This kind of behavior drains consumers’ wallets and undermines affordability in our city,” said Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice Julie Su. “This administration is committed to rooting out corporate greed wherever it appears, and I commend Commissioner Levine and DCWP for taking bold action by filing this lawsuit.”
“It’s time for storage companies like Extra Space to face accountability for exploiting hard-working New Yorkers,” said New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin. “Many New Yorkers rely on self-storage as a necessary solution to limited living space or sudden changes to their living situations. They deserve storage facilities whose services are transparent, reliable, and fully compliant with our city’s laws. I thank Commissioner Levine for his leadership in pursuing real accountability and protecting New Yorkers from future exploitation.”
“Extra Space is the subject of over 100 complaints by New Yorkers fed up with their bait-and-switch pricing, unsanitary conditions, and threats to auction off customers’ belongings if they refuse to pay junk fees and other bogus charges,” said New York City Council Member Harvey Epstein. “The DCWP’s lawsuit sends a clear message: deception and exploitation will not be tolerated. As Chair of the Consumer and Worker Protection Committee, I am proud to support DCWP in their fight to ensure honest pricing and a commitment to quality services for all New Yorkers.”
The sad part is that there was absolutely no reason for this to have happened. Reasonable revenue pricing strategies would have never risen to this level of public scrutiny. All of us owners suffer as a result of this.
You may say something like, well New York City is now run by a liberal mayor. True, but that is a non-thinking person’s way of ducking the underlying real issue at hand. It was bound to start in New York and California, but unless checked, it will filter down to red states as well. Late fee abuse ten years ago sure did, and we now have almost every state in the nation defining what a late fee is and its upper limits.
Would you like to see that with storage rental rates? I sure don’t.
We need more people like Joe Shoen to publicly speak up. I speak up, but although I may be a big deal in my own mind, not many people really care what I think.
Let me ask you a few questions. What is your impression of:
Politicians?
Used car salesmen?
Pharmaceutical Companies?
Oil & Gas Companies?
Health Insurance Companies?
These are some of the lowest rated industries in the US today.
How would you like to see self-storage as an industry be on this list?
I have renewed hope after U-Haul’s recent stand against these practices that we may be able, as an industry, to avoid it.
My call for you is that within your state Storage Association, take a stand against the abusive bait and switch practices and more aggressive uses of dynamic pricing strategies.
Educate your customer about what companies like Extra Space do, then set yourself apart from them.
Become a valued part of your local community (remember, nothing is more local than self-storage) and treat your customers fairly, the way you would want to be treated.
I have renewed hope today for our industry and see the light at the end of the tunnel.
