Your storage unit rental agreement should spell out rent, due dates, default, late fees, access, lien rights, electronic notices, leftover balances, and contact details. Get these right, and your staff will know exactly what to do when a tenant stops paying. Get one wrong and you may not be able to collect at all.
That’s not an exaggeration. In North Carolina, a storage facility that breaks the late-fee rules can’t recover its late fees or attorney fees.
Below are the seven clauses we’d check first, plus a bonus one. This isn’t legal advice. Have your attorney match the wording to your state’s law.
1. Rent, Due Date, and Default
Put the rent, the due date, and how tenants can pay in plain words. Then name the exact day an account goes into default.
Why does that day matter so much? Your notices, overlocks, and sale dates usually count from it. If the lease says day 5 and your software says day 10, someone will miss a deadline. Pick one date. Use it everywhere.
2. Late Fees With an Exact Amount and Start Date
Don’t write “applicable late fees.” Tenants will push back, and they’d have a point. Write the exact amount and the day it starts.
Each state sets its own limits. Two examples:
Florida says $20 or 20% of monthly rent, whichever is more, is reasonable. The fee has to be in the lease or an addendum (Fla. Stat. § 83.808(3)).
North Carolina caps it at $15 or 15% of the rent payment, whichever is more. You can’t charge it until rent is five days late, and only once per late payment. The late fee terms also have to be in bold, at least 14-point type (N.C.G.S. §§ 66-305, 66-306).
These numbers won’t carry over to other states. Our article on self-storage late fees goes deeper.
3. Denial of Access
Overlocks work. Tenants who ignore letters often call quickly when they can’t access their things.
But the timing has to be right. Some states let you lock a unit as soon as rent is late. Others make you wait or send notice first. Your lease can’t change that. Match the clause to your state’s rule, and tell staff in writing when the lock goes on and what the tenant pays to get it off.
4. Lien Rights and Sale
Your lease should say you hold a lien on what’s in the unit for unpaid rent and fees. It should also say you can sell those items once you’ve given the required notices.
A one-line “we may auction your belongings” isn’t enough. Many states spell out the notice wording, how it’s sent, the deadlines, and how you advertise the sale. Miss a step and the sale can be challenged, lease or no lease. Our storage unit past-due letter templates walk through a notice sequence that leads up to the lien stage.
5. Consent to Electronic Communication
Texting a payment reminder is one thing. Emailing a legal lien notice is another. Many states only allow email lien notices if the lease says so, and some want specific wording.
Texts also fall under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Tell tenants what kinds of texts they’ll get and how to opt out.
Mind the hours, too. In Florida, you can’t contact a debtor about a debt between 9 p.m. and 8 a.m. unless they’ve agreed to it (Fla. Stat. § 559.72(17)).
6. Collections and Remaining Balances
This is the clause most leases leave out. It’s also the one that costs operators the most.
A lien sale often doesn’t cover what the tenant owes. Picture this: the unit sells for $400. The tenant owed $1,100. You’re short $700. If your lease says nothing, the tenant will likely assume the auction settled things.
Your collections clause should say three things. The leftover balance is still owed, where state law allows. You can send the account to a collection agency. And the tenant pays collection costs where the law permits.
Sample wording (illustrative only)
If the sale proceeds don’t cover what you owe, you still owe the rest, as allowed by law. We may send unpaid accounts to a collection agency and add collection costs where the law and this agreement allow.
Still carrying balances after lien sales? See how much you could recover.
7. Up-to-Date Contact Details
You can’t collect from a tenant you can’t find. Make tenants keep their address, email, and phone number current, and require written notice when anything changes. A notice sent to an old address may not count.
One caution: if you ask for a backup contact at move-in, don’t discuss the debt with that person.
Bonus Clause: Limitation of Value
This one isn’t about collections, but it helps when a late account turns into a fight. In Florida, if your lease caps the value of stored items, that cap counts as the maximum value of what’s in the unit (Fla. Stat. § 83.806(9)). It gives you a firm number if a tenant later argues their things were worth more.
Put the Agreement to Work
A good lease does nothing if staff don’t follow it. A few habits help:
- Write out the timeline, from the first missed payment to the lien sale and any leftover balance. Give each step an owner.
- Make sure your notice templates use the same wording as your lease.
- Keep copies of every notice, proof of delivery, the sale results, and how you worked out the balance.
- Don’t let an account sit because everyone thinks someone else has it.
When a balance is left after a sale or move-out, that’s where we come in. Kollecta’s self-storage collections service goes after what’s still owed.
- We work on contingency. You only pay if we collect.
- We mainly handle post-charge-off debt, and we’ll take first-party collections if you ask.
- We collect from both consumer and business tenants.
- You can check account status, payments, and collector notes in real time through our client portal.
Writing a lease from scratch? Our self-storage rental agreement template and collections kit are a good place to start. Just have your attorney review it.
Got unpaid balances after a sale or move-out? Talk to us.
Frequently Asked Questions
At a minimum: rent and due date, default, late fees, access rules, lien and sale rights, consent to electronic notices, a clause on leftover balances, and a duty to keep contact details current. A limitation-of-value clause is worth adding too.
No, not on its own. The sale money goes toward the balance, and anything left over is usually still owed. Whether you can collect it depends on your state’s law, so spell it out in the lease.
In many states, yes. If the law allows it and your lease covers leftover balances, you can go after the shortfall, including in small claims court. Good records of the notices, the sale, and your math make the case stronger.
In many states, you can’t charge one. Florida, for example, only allows a late fee if the amount and terms are in the lease or an addendum. Add the clause before you charge anything.
