Business
Zack Widmann is the founder of ZHW Properties which focuses on representing institutional buyers in the purchase of self storage facilities. He credits early job experiences and college internships with his choice of self storage as the asset class for his business. Zack subscribes to the axiom that the least sexy real estate ventures can bring the best returns, and he describes the role of the acquisitions analyst, advancements in automation, cap rates, return metrics, compensation for the general partners, and the pros and cons of off-market deals. He appreciates the stability of self storage as a needs-based asset class, and stability is definitely a relevant factor during these times of the Covid-19 crisis. Zack offers observations on the impact of the pandemic in the self storage industry, such as decisions on exercising forbearance on late fees and lien sales and the acceleration of the existing trends toward automation as a way to achieve the required social distancing.