Storage Moguls

What do you do when the seller of your first self-storage facility simply stops showing up? Phones go dark, the website dies, and occupancy craters to 40%...while you're still under contract and $25,000 deep in non-recoverable costs? That's the crisis at the center of this episode. Joe Downs sits down with Adam and Kirby Leiby, a sales professional and homeschooling mom with zero prior storage experience, who purchased Lemon Springs Self Storage in Sanford, North Carolina for $625,000 in August 2025. Less than a year later, the 96-unit facility is at 70% occupancy and climbing, year-one projections are hit, and deal number two is already in their sights. Their story is a masterclass in one of the most valuable skills in self-storage investing: telling the difference between a market that doesn't want you and an operator who simply stopped trying. If you've ever wondered whether you have what it takes to close a distressed deal, this episode is required listening. Listen For:1:10 How did two career professionals with zero storage experience decide to buy their first self-storage facility?7:33 What does secretly shopping a 10-mile radius around a storage facility actually reveal about the market?12:26 When occupancy drops to 40% mid-contract, how do first-time storage investors decide whether to walk or close?15:40 What is the single moment Adam and Kirby Leiby decided to push through and close the Lemon Springs deal?22:43 What does a storage investor's five-year portfolio vision actually look like in practice and what are you doing today to get there? CONNECT WITH GUEST: ADAM & KIRBY LIEBYWebsite | Adam's LinkedIn | Kirby's LinkedIn | Adam's Instagram | Kirby's Instagram | Adam's Facebook | Kirby's Facebook | Facebook Page   CONNECT WITH USJoe Downs on LinkedInBelrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn

What would happen to your household income if you couldn't work tomorrow? That single question is at the heart of this episode and for guest Christin Blunk, it wasn't hypothetical. When her husband Rod was diagnosed with stage four cancer three days before Christmas, their income stopped cold.  What followed transformed their life with 20 years of residential real estate experience into self-storage investors generating $12,000 per month in passive cash flow…on less than 15 hours of management per month.  Joe Downs sits down with Christin to unpack how she and Rod found and financed two self-storage facilities in Kentucky using conventional bank financing, no SBA, no private equity, with a combined investment of under $200,000 and built a portfolio now tracking toward $3.75–$4 million at exit. If you've been sitting on the fence about self-storage investing, this episode is your wake-up call. Listen For:7:13 How did a stage four cancer diagnosis completely change the way Christin Blunk thinks about income and self-storage investing?12:24 Why did Christin spend a full year educating herself before buying her first self-storage facility, even with 20 years of real estate experience?17:14 How did Christin finance her first self-storage acquisition using conventional local bank financing with just 20% down?22:49 What did Christin discover during due diligence on her second self-storage deal, and how did she turn 40 non-paying tenants into an advantage?34:36 What does Christin Blunk say to the storage investor who has all the information they need but still hasn't pulled the trigger? CONNECT WITH GUEST: CHRISTIN BLUNKWarriors 2 Wealth Website | Warriors 2 Wealth YouTube | Christin's Instagram | Christin's LinkedIn CONNECT WITH USJoe Downs on LinkedInBelrose website | Belrose email | Belrose LinkedIn

Storage Moguls, hosted by entrepreneur and storage investing expert Joe Downs, is the go-to podcast for real estate investors, entrepreneurs, and self storage operators serious about building wealth through self storage and Boat & RV storage. Each week, Joe sits down with industry experts, seasoned storage operators, and students who've done the deals, delivering deep-dive conversations on underwriting, SBA loans, SBA financing, deal analysis, storage acquisitions, facility valuation, cap rates, NOI, and everything in between. Whether you're a first-time real estate investor evaluating your first storage facility or an experienced entrepreneur scaling your commercial real estate portfolio, Storage Moguls gives you the real-world storage education and passive income strategies you need to move with confidence. They will thank you later.