Region

Self storage finance in the Yorkshire and the Humber

Leeds and Sheffield anchor Yorkshire's storage market, with strong conversion activity in the cities and container growth across the M62 and A1 corridors.

£27.40/sq ft
Avg storage rate (UK)
74.5%
Avg occupancy (UK, all stores)
5%
Prime storage yield
36,995
House sales, 12m (tracked towns)

Home to around 5.5 million people, Yorkshire and the Humber stretches from the Pennines across the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors to the Humber Estuary. We arrange the full range of self storage finance across the Yorkshire and the Humber, from the acquisition finance and commercial mortgages that buy and hold a trading store to the bridging, development, mezzanine and equity behind a build, a conversion or a container site. Self storage market data is published nationally by SSA UK and Cushman & Wakefield, so the figures above are presented as clearly-labelled benchmarks, while the housing-transaction figure is genuinely local Land Registry data for the towns we track.

Yorkshire's storage market leans on its two big cities, where renting households and student churn keep demand constant, while market towns across the region are served by a fast-growing container segment. National figures frame the opportunity: 74.5 percent average occupancy and £27.40 average revenue per sq ft on the SSA UK and Cushman & Wakefield 2026 report, with northern stores trading below southern rates but bought on keener yields. Development finance demand here is led by conversions of mill and industrial stock.

On capital values, the strongest public evidence comes from the listed operators' external valuations: Big Yellow's London and commuter-town weighted stores were valued at £458/sq ft of lettable area and its regional Armadillo stores at £185/sq ft (Big Yellow FY2026 results (JLL-valued), Mar 2026), with Safestore's UK estate at about ~£364/sq ft on a derived basis (Safestore FY2025 results (Cushman & Wakefield-valued), Oct 2025). The evidenced span from regional secondary to prime London and the South East runs at roughly £185 to £460/sq ft, on a going-concern trading basis rather than vacant possession.

Development activity is visible across the region: we track 6 recent self storage planning applications in the Yorkshire and the Humber through council planning registers, part of a national feed covering more than 60 local authorities.

Benchmark figures from SSA UK / Cushman & Wakefield; Savills, European Self Storage Spotlight. Regional commentary draws on SSA UK / Cushman & Wakefield (UK Annual Industry Report, 2026).

Key markets

Storage markets in the Yorkshire and the Humber

The principal storage catchments across the region.

  • Leeds
  • Sheffield
  • York
  • Hull
  • Bradford
  • Doncaster
By county

Self storage finance by county in the Yorkshire and the Humber

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Funding a storage facility in the Yorkshire and the Humber?

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