A Blackstone open-ended US real estate fund has sold 127 self-storage properties to Public Storage for $2.2bn (€2bn).

Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust (BREIT), which owns Simply Self Storage, has agreed to sell the platform to New York-listed Public Storage.

Public Storage said the acquisition of the portfolio of 9m sqft of net rentable space across 18 states was part of its opportunistic growth strategy. 

Since 2019, Public Storage has expanded its portfolio by almost 55m net rentable sqft, or 34%, through $10.6bn of acquisitions, development and redevelopment.

Joe Russell, Public Storage’s CEO, said: “This acquisition reflects the continued execution of our multi-factor external growth platform, which includes acquisitions, development, redevelopment, expansion and third-party management.”

Russell added that Blackstone had made a “tremendous job of growing and improving” the quality and operations of the Simply Self Storage portfolio in recent years.

Under BREIT’s ownership, Blackstone invested in the Simply platform to enhance the portfolio and management team, and to increase its net operating income.

Nadeem Meghji, head of Blackstone’s real estate Americas business, said: “Where you invest matters, and this transaction demonstrates the strong investor demand for the high-quality assets and platforms we have assembled within BREIT.

“This sale is a terrific outcome for BREIT stockholders and enables us to further concentrate BREIT’s portfolio in its highest growth sectors.”

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