Most American families have too much stuff. (I must count myself among the guilty.) When the volume of one’s possessions exceeds the storage capacity of a home, many people rent an outside unit for the overflow, suggests Jim Powell, editor of Global Changes & Opportunities.

The alternative is to sell what isn’t being used or needed — but that’s too terrible to contemplate. Storage units are also very popular with businesses. It is usually less expensive to rent a storage space then to expand an office to hold inventory.

There are even greater savings for businesses that have seasonal items that sell out. When that happens, the storage unit can be cancelled and the rental fee put to better use.

For both individuals and businesses, the arrival of difficult economic times can also make it necessary to downsize and put possessions and inventory in outside storage units. Natural disasters also greatly increase the need for storage units to hold furniture and other possessions until victims can rebuild or relocate.

Extra Space Storage (EXR) is a REIT that operates 1,650 self-storage stores – with a total of 1.2 million units — in 39 states, Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico.

In addition to storage units, the company offers inside and outside boat and RV storage. For businesses with large storage needs, the company has oversized units that function as small warehouses.

The company has an additional business providing insurance for the goods it stores. Extra pace Storage is the second largest operator of self-storage businesses in the US. The current dividend yield is an attractive 3.37%.

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