FMS Capital Trust and Forum Make Space Storage Fund (MSSF) have each acquired 50 per cent stakes in four self-storage facilities in the Hamilton, Ont. area from a private seller.

The four properties are located in Ancaster, Dundas, Upper James and Waterdown and comprise approximately 184,000 square feet of net rentable area across roughly 1,200 storage units.

Forum Asset Management managing partner for real estate Aly Damji told RENX the previous owner, which also developed the four facilities, took a portion of the sales proceeds in MSSF units.

This latest deal follows the June acquisition of five other Ontario self-storage properties in Grimsby, Niagara Falls, Keswick and Port Perry from Vaultra Storage. That portfolio is comprised of about 1,500 units with approximately 200,000 square feet of net rentable area.

“We had assets in some of these areas, or in close proximity to them, so we knew the operating synergies that could be derived through acquiring these and putting them through our clustering strategy,” said Damji of the two portfolios.

“Alternative real estate sectors require hands-on management to drive alpha. So, we really like to lean into acquisitions where we know there's operational upside that can be gained by tucking them into our existing operations, or if we have a competitive advantage because we know about things in the market that others may not know. I would say both of these portfolios truly embody that.”

Forum Make Space and self-storage consolidation

The facilities will be managed by the fully vertically integrated Forum Make Space operating platform, which manages a growing network of self-storage properties across Canada. It has more than $500 million in assets under management and comprises 67 facilities spanning 2.7 million square feet, positioning it among the country’s leading owners and operators of self-storage facilities.

About 80 per cent of Canada’s approximately 4,000 self-storage facilities are independently owned, according to Damji.

“Canada is fundamentally still undersupplied compared to the U.S.,” said Damji. “We've got roughly two-and-a-half square feet of storage per capita versus eight-plus in the U.S., and the industry is ripe for consolidation.”

Forum Asset Management and Make Space

Toronto-based Forum Asset Management is an investor, developer and asset manager focused on real estate, private equity and infrastructure. The enterprise value of its assets under management exceeds $3.8 billion.

Forum Asset Management and Make Space Inc. announced a strategic joint venture and launched MSSF in January 2024. Make Space, which launched in 2004, is headquartered in New Westminster, B.C.

“We're 100 per cent Canadian and privately owned,” said Damji. “That's a little different than some of the other competitors here who are either funded by pension plans or are Americans entering Canada.”

While Damji said competitors are largely going after multi-storey, urban, climate-controlled facilities, FMS Capital Trust and MSSF are more focused on single-storey, drive-up facilities that may include some indoor climate-controlled space.

“We also like sites with larger land availability to increase revenue through portable storage in the short to medium term and then, as demand grows, adding more long-term storage facilities,” explained Damji.

MSSF

MSSF is the evergreen self-storage fund of Forum Make Space. The open-ended private real estate investment trust has a portfolio of 37 properties across six provinces, totalling more than 1.4 million rentable square feet of storage and more than $265 million in assets under management.

MSSF is targeting a 12 to 15 per cent annual total net return for investors.

“Investors can access it through a variety of private wealth platforms, and the idea is value-added returns and income growth over time,” said Damji.

FMS Capital Trust

With the completion of this latest acquisition, the closed-ended FMS Capital Trust fund has grown to more than $110 million in gross asset value. It’s substantially fully allocated a year after its launch in August 2025.

FMS Capital Trust has deployed capital exclusively into established income-producing self-storage assets, with an emphasis on under-served secondary markets. It's targeting a 15 per cent pre-tax gross internal rate of return and a 4.5 per cent annual distribution for investors.

“Down the road, we will absolutely consider additional investment vehicles as well as a variety of other opportunities, such as potential joint ventures,” said Damji. 

“As our platform continues to grow and creates a name for itself, we’re having many conversations with capital providers about how to increase their exposure to self-storage because many groups see the benefits of self-storage that we do.”