A new self-storage facility is due in Jersey City, following construction financing arranged by JLL Capital Markets.

According to a Jan. 7 announcement from the global commercial real estate and investment management company, it worked on behalf of borrower Tulfra Real Estate to secure the construction loan with Futlon Bank NA. Public Storage will lease and manage the 795-unit facility, JLL said.

Located at 300 McGovern Drive, Liberty Storage Center will boast 103,530 square feet of space in a supply-constrained market. JLL cited the Hudson County hotspot’s 30% increase in residents since the 2010 census – flagging the area as a predominantly “renter-oriented population.”

At the end of 2024, Rent Café noted that while rates declined nationally in the self-storage sector, select cities showed “remarkable price resilience.” Jersey City topped the ranked list of Top 10 Cities for Street Rate Growth. Rent Café identified monthly rents for all unit sizes there at $199, a 6.6% year-over-year increase. Meanwhile, it noted a lack of new supply with no deliveries noted for 2022 or 2023.

The apartment search website highlighted urban hubs near major metro areas, specifically referencing Jersey City, as experiencing strong self-storage demand driven “by dense populations, limited housing space, and high turnover rates.

“In these high-demand environments, the scarcity of storage options continues to exert upward pressure on street rates, reflecting the market’s inability to meet consumer needs adequately,” according to Rent Café.

Senior Managing Directors Jon Mikula and Michael Klein and Vice President Ryan Carroll led JLL’s Capital Markets Debt Advisory team representing the borrower. According to a Dec. 9 announcement from Tulfra Real Estate, Fulton Bank Senior Vice President Commercial Real Estate Team Leader Jeff Wallace and Senior Vice President John Lipiros represented the lender. Mitchell Berkey and Joseph Zawila of CSG Law represented the borrower, Tulfra said.

More to come

“Self-storage continues to be one of the most resilient asset classes and has seen a surge in demand over the last few years,” Mikula said. “As a result, lender interest was strong, particularly given Liberty Storage Center will benefit from the undersupply of self-storage in the growing Jersey City market and the strong demographics surrounding the property.”

Based in Rochelle Park, Tulfra Real Estate’s portfolio includes seven self-storage facilities, according to the company’s website. Altogether, the company says it has developed 1 million square feet of self-storage facilities across North Jersey.

Upon completion, the six-story, climate-controlled Liberty Storage center will mark the first of three phases, set to total 260,000 square feet, according to Tulfra Real Estate. The company said site work and construction is underway on that. Tulfra said it worked closely with city and state agencies for five years to secure the proper permits for the project. The work will transform a former concrete plant into a Class A storage facility.

Situated adjacent to Liberty State Park, Liberty Storage Center is 1 mile from Exchange Place and the PATH station in Jersey City and 20 minutes from Lower Manhattan.