When you need money to build your self-storage or boat and RV storage project, Nick Collins is a good guy to know. As a commercial lender with First Bank Financial Centre, Nick finances both existing facilities and helps people with new construction and expansion.

Although Nick does work with other types of industries, ninety percent of his deals are self-storage loans.

For Nick, it all started ten years ago when he was in the crowd at a Trachte Building seminar, and Jamie Lindau peppered him with questions. Nick was so inspired, “From that point on, I asked if I could pay my own way to travel to their seminars. At first, I only did them in Wisconsin, and then I branched out into the Midwest and, from there, onto a national platform.”

Looking back, Nick sees how his personal growth mirrors that of the self-storage industry as it has grown by leaps and bounds in the last ten years.

“The self-storage industry changed my life drastically because I went from being in my twenties focused on local Milwaukee businesses to self-storage at a statewide, and then nationwide, level. It’s really broadened my perspective, going from doing deals for a barbershop on Main Street to new construction deals in Alaska!”

According to Nick, the most rewarding part of his job is finally getting to the finish line and seeing all aspects of a self-storage investment come together, beginning with someone’s vision and business plan and having them be a business owner at the end of the day. “That’s the most rewarding part of the job, helping someone become an owner-operator of their first facility,” he says.

It’s safe to say the least favorite aspect of Nick’s role is the same as the sponsor of a new construction deal. “Whether it is soil conditions, weather, or general contractor changes, there are a lot of variables at play. While this also makes new construction deals interesting, at the same time, you never know what you’re going to get on a day-to-day basis, and that can be nerve-wracking for everyone involved.”

Nick’s vision of self-storage investing in the next few years, is this will be a telling time. “We’ve had such a good run, and there were—and are—so many new facilities being built. It will likely become more of a balancing act in finding areas that have shortages in square footage necessary to meet needed supply and enough population to fill them.”

“Although I thought the run in this industry would plateau a year or two ago, so maybe you’d be better off asking a Magic 8 ball,” Nick jokes. “I think there is still a lot of opportunity in many of the tertiary markets. From a banking standpoint, we still only want to finance sound deals that meet our underwriting criteria. It will be interesting to see which facilities make it and which don’t of the new growth. I don’t think in the long term we will see as much growth as we have in the last ten years.”

Drop Nick a line via email at Nick.Collins@fbfcwi.com.