Apartment construction has been booming in Houston the last 40 years, fueling a surge in the number of self-storage facilities across the city, too.

According to a new analysis from national storage space marketplace StorageCafe, Houston had No. 1 highest rate of new apartment construction nationwide over the past four decades. During that same period, Houston also topped the list with the highest supply of self-storage space in the U.S.

The report says self-storage facilities in places like Houston have become "an essential support system" for the city's rental market growth. Everybody's got to have a place to put their stuff.

The experts at StorageCafe analyzed apartment growth in 130 of the largest U.S. cities from 1985-2024, then compared it to the supply of self-storage facilities that were developed over the same 40-year period. The report also analyzed population growth, renting trends, and the prevalence in remote work over the past decade to provide additional context regarding the demand for storage space across all 130 cities.

Houston's skyrocketing apartment growth has drawn national attention over the last several years. And from 1985-2024, a total 240,659 apartment units were developed in the city. That's nearly half (48 percent) of the total apartment inventory in the city, the report found.

The rise of self storage in Houston
StorageCafe's analysis has revealed Houston apartments are getting smaller and smaller, thus leading to the surge in demand for storage solutions.

"[Houston] apartments built from 2015 onward have shrunk by 44 square feet on average — roughly the size of a walk-in closet — while 5.3 million square feet of storage were added locally," the report said.

A 2025 rent analysis from sister site RentCafe found that Houston renters on a $1,500 budget will be able to afford a 972-square-foot apartment, but folks who are on a tighter budget will have to make do with a smaller space.

Apartment shrinkage isn't just a problem in Houston: Apartments throughout the U.S. that were built within the last decade are about 75 square feet smaller on average than those that were built in the early 2000s.

"Coupled with the rise of remote work, which is blurring the lines between home and office, this steady loss of space is leaving many renters feeling the squeeze," the report's author wrote. "That’s where self storage steps in – not as a luxury, but a necessity... Behind every sleek new high-rise is a storage unit, holding the things that no longer fit but still matter."

More than 20 million square feet of self-storage space was developed in Houston from 1985-2024, the report found. The total amount of self-storage space in the city adds up to 27.6 million square feet.

Houston's senior population may also be contributing to the rise in self-storage usage. A separate Point2Homes insight report determined Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land saw a 60 percent increase in senior renters nationwide from 2013 to 2023, with many seniors abandoning the "burdens" of homeownership to live closer to family, downsize, or cut costs to simplify their standard of living.

Considering that the average Houston renter needs to make nearly $68,000 a year to live in the city, it's no surprise people keep flocking to the suburbs instead.

Apartment growth elsewhere in Texas
Austin, Dallas, and San Antonio all joined Houston among the top five U.S. cities with the highest apartment growth rates over the last four decades.

Austin ranked second nationally with 189,438 units and about 7.5 million square feet of self-storage space built during the 40-year period.

Dallas claimed the No. 3 spot with more than 158,000 apartments built within the last four decades, and nearly 7.76 million square feet of self-storage space.

San Antonio ranked No. 5 with 134,871 units developed and nearly 13,42 million square feet of self storage space built.

Meanwhile, Fort Worth ranked 20th on the list with 101,729 apartments built between 1985-2024, and more than 7.82 million square feet of self storage space developed during the same time.

The top 10 cities that have built the most new apartments since 1985 are:

• No. 1 – Houston, Texas
• No. 2 – Austin, Texas
• No. 3 – Dallas, Texas
• No. 4 – Atlanta, Georgia
• No. 5 – San Antonio, Texas
• No. 6 – Charlotte, North Carolina
• No. 7 – Los Angeles, California
• No. 8 – Orlando, Florida
• No. 9 –Manhattan, New York
• No. 10 – Las Vegas, Nevada