---
title: "How can self-storage owners control operating expenses?"
description: "**Short answer:** Mark focuses on NOI, so expenses get the same attention as revenue. His main levers are tenant retention, staff productivity (not cutting good people), energy efficiency, closely tracked marketing spend, routine property tax reviews, and insurance. None of…"
url: "https://creatingwealththroughselfstorage.com/docs/control-self-storage-operating-expenses/"
updated: "2026-10-16"
category: "Operations & Management"
---

# How can self-storage owners control operating expenses?

**Short answer:** Mark focuses on NOI, so expenses get the same attention as revenue. His main levers are tenant retention, staff productivity (not cutting good people), energy efficiency, closely tracked marketing spend, routine property tax reviews, and insurance. None of it is glamorous; he says it’s the owner’s job, not the manager’s or a vendor’s.

## The levers

- **Tenant retention.** Every move-out costs money to replace, especially in online marketing. Track the value of each lease and the average length of stay; if both rise each year, value and customer experience improve. Retention is mostly a function of customer service.
- **Payroll.** Mark isn’t advocating firing people. He tracks gross income per full-time employee as a productivity measure, and saw it rise substantially after adding kiosks and then scheduling staff around each facility’s peak times. Hire the right people, train them well and use technology so you need fewer of them.
- **Energy.** LED lighting made a noticeable difference. A new acquisition or development is a good moment to budget for efficient HVAC and LED packages. Check thermostat settings by season, put interior lights on timers and make sure drive-in doors close automatically.
- **Marketing.** Necessary, often underestimated in lease-up, and easy to let run out of control. Even with a vendor, the owner should measure and know how each channel performs. Very aggressive free-rent offers can bring in shorter-staying tenants.
- **Property taxes.** Mark has a standard procedure: every assessment goes to a property tax consulting firm, usually paid from a share of any reduction, to see whether an appeal is worthwhile. Some owners do this themselves.
- **Insurance.** The expense that has risen fastest; see the related answer on lowering insurance costs.

Mark’s suggestion is to make it a game: see how much value you can create in a year by focusing on operating expenses.

## Related answers

- [Why should self-storage owners compare actual NOI with budget NOI every month?](/docs/actual-noi-vs-budget-noi/)
- [How can self-storage owners lower their property insurance costs?](/docs/lower-self-storage-property-insurance-costs/)
- [What add-on revenue can a self-storage facility offer?](/docs/self-storage-add-on-revenue/)

**Source:** Mark’s post [Expense Discipline: The Quiet Way to Grow Self-Storage Value in 2026](/expense-discipline-the-quiet-way-to-grow-self-storage-value-in-2026/)

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