Current Investigation
Self-Storage Pricing Investigation
Investigation into potential bait-and-switch pricing practices by self-storage companies that lure renters in with advertised discount rates, then raise their monthly prices shortly after move-in — all while continuing to advertise the original discounted rate to new customers for the same units.
Noss & Russell Investigates Self-Storage Companies Over Post-Move-In Price Increases Affecting California Renters
Noss & Russell is investigating potential legal claims against major self-storage companies operating in California — on behalf of California renters who were drawn in by advertised discount rates only to have their monthly prices raised substantially shortly after move-in, while the companies continued to advertise the original lower rates to new customers for the same units.
Self-storage rentals typically begin with an advertised promotional or "move-in" rate that draws the renter to a particular facility or unit. Shortly after the renter signs the rental agreement and moves their belongings into the unit, the rate is increased — first to a represented "market rate," and then, often within a matter of months, to a higher than what the renter originally agreed to pay.
The conduct under investigation has a distinctive feature: while existing renters are being hit with these substantial increases, the same self-storage companies continue to advertise the original lower rate to new customers for comparable units at the same facility. Renters who happen to see those advertisements are often the first to realize that the "market rate" they were told they are paying is not, in fact, the rate the company is charging new customers.
Noss & Russell is examining whether this pattern of conduct constitutes unfair or deceptive business practices, false advertising, breach of the rental agreement, and other violations of California laws designed to protect consumers from bait-and-switch pricing.
WHAT HAPPENED?
wHY THIS MATTERS
For California renters, self-storage is rarely optional. Renters use storage units during moves, after losing housing, while transitioning between homes, during deployments, after the death of a family member, or simply because their living space cannot accommodate everything they own. Once belongings are inside the unit, the practical cost of moving them elsewhere — a moving truck, time off work, an alternative facility — often exceeds the price increase itself. Self-storage companies know this, and the timing of the increases reflects it.
The financial harm is real and recurring. A $50 monthly increase is $600 a year. A $100 monthly increase is $1,200 a year. For renters who keep a unit for two, three, or five years, the cumulative cost of these increases runs into the thousands of dollars — paid by Californians who were told, at the outset, that they were renting at a fair market rate.
wHO MAY BE AFFECTED
Noss & Russell is interested in hearing from California residents who:
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Rented a self-storage unit in California from January 2022 to the present
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Were offered an advertised discount or promotional rate at the time of move-in
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Received a significant price increase within several months of moving in
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Noticed that the same self-storage company continued to advertise the original lower rate to new customers for similar units after the increase
If any of the above applies, you may have legal rights worth protecting under California law.
Contact Noss & Russell, LLP
If you are a California self-storage renter who experienced these practices, Noss & Russell would like to hear from you.
There is no cost or obligation to speak with us. Consultations are free and confidential. If we accept your case, we handle it on a contingency-fee basis — you pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you.
To speak with an attorney, contact Noss & Russell, LLP at (619)678-1880 or request a consultation below.