Scott Chase has built a special storage operation by focusing on people

I sit down with Scott Chase, President of U-Haul of Eastern Massachusetts and Board Director of the Northeast Self Storage Association (NESSA), for a grounded, behind-the-scenes look at leadership, culture, and operational strategy within one of commercial real estate's legacy operators.

Scott started with U-Haul nearly 30 years ago fresh out of high school, taking a part-time job behind the counter to support his young family. Over the course of three decades, he rose through field management and has led the Eastern Massachusetts market for the past 15 years. In this episode, Scott shares how U-Haul maintains an entrepreneurial, low-bureaucracy environment where executives are promoted from within, and operational decisions can be cleared in as few as three phone calls.

We examine U-Haul's deliberate counter-cultural stance on rate increases: while major REITs leaned into aggressive Existing Customer Rate Increases (ECRIs) post-COVID, U-Haul implemented rate-lock guarantees and modest rent bumps tied strictly to property improvements to safeguard customer trust and retain long-term occupancy. Scott also breaks down how his team navigates Boston's chaotic September 1 university lease turnover, why technology must deliver tangible tenant value to justify its cost, and why regional associations like NESSA are vital for the independent operators managing 48% of the country's self-storage supply.

Key Takeaways From This Episode: The Promote-From-Within Engine: How U-Haul cultivates deep loyalty and operational fluency by ensuring every leader has spent real time working the counter.

Rethinking Rate Management: Why U-Haul rejected the REIT playbook of aggressive move-in discounts followed by steep ECRIs, opting instead for rate stability and long-term customer goodwill.

Operational Humility: Why Scott still works front counters during peak move-in weekends to stay grounded in customer realities and lead by example.

The Independent Operator Moat: How regional and state associations like NESSA protect local facility owners through localized legislative advocacy and operational education.

Pragmatic PropTech Adoption: Why facility operators should prioritize technologies that directly enhance customer experience rather than adopting tools that only serve internal vanity metrics.

Whether you operate a portfolio of stores or manage boots-on-the-ground facility teams, Scott's candor and thirty-year operational perspective provide a masterclass in people-fir