# Sundance Bay Paid $11 Million for an 841-Unit Birmingham and Homewood, Alabama, Portfolio in September 2026

> Salt Lake City-based Sundance Bay closed on the 841-unit UpLift portfolio for $11 million, or roughly $13,080 per unit, in late August 2026. The Birmingham Business Journal reported the buyer on September 10 as Sundance Bay extends its 12-month acquisition streak into affluent Alabama suburbs.

- URL: https://www.yourcaio.co/news/sundance-bay-birmingham-homewood-11-million-acquisition-september-2026
- Published: 2026-09-14
- Author: David Cartolano (https://www.yourcaio.co/about)
- Category: Acquisitions
- Property type: Self-Storage
- Tags: Sundance Bay, Birmingham Alabama, Homewood, UpLift Self Storage, September 2026 Deals
- Source: [Birmingham Business Journal](https://www.bizjournals.com/birmingham/news/2026/09/10/sundance-self-storage.html)

## Key Takeaways

- Sundance Bay paid $11 million for a two-property self-storage portfolio in Birmingham and Homewood, Alabama, totaling 841 units and 118,385 rentable square feet, per the Birmingham Business Journal on September 10, 2026, citing a late-August 2026 closing.
- The price works out to approximately $13,080 per unit and $93 per net rentable square foot on Class A assets built in 2016 and 2021 that Marcus & Millichap marketed as the UpLift Self Storage portfolio in August 2026.
- Sundance Bay's August 31, 2026 LinkedIn announcement identified the deal as its first Birmingham MSA storage investment and its 11th and 12th self-storage acquisitions in the past 12 months.
- The Homewood facility at 480 Wildwood Circle North offers 385 units and 46,850 square feet from a 2021 build; the Birmingham property at 3240 Veterans Circle has 456 units and 52,125 square feet from 2016.
- The trade follows [Sundance Bay's Fort Worth acquisition and Extra Space rebrand](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/sundance-bay-fort-worth-extra-space-rebrand-august-2026) in August 2026 and sits in the same Marcus & Millichap LeClaire-Schlosser deal flow that [brokered the UpLift seller's process](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/uplift-self-storage-birmingham-homewood-portfolio-august-2026).

Sundance Bay paid $11 million for a two-property self-storage portfolio in Birmingham and Homewood, Alabama, totaling 841 units and 118,385 rentable square feet, per the Birmingham Business Journal on September 10, 2026. The late-August 2026 closing works out to approximately $13,080 per unit on Class A assets that Marcus & Millichap marketed as the UpLift Self Storage portfolio weeks earlier.

Private equity storage sponsors are not slowing down because national advertised rents remain negative year over year. They are buying scarcity in specific submarkets where vintage, income quality, and barriers to new supply justify institutional pricing.

---

## What Did Sundance Bay Acquire in the Birmingham MSA?

Sundance Bay's August 31, 2026 LinkedIn post announced the acquisition of a well-located two-property portfolio in Birmingham and Homewood. The combined footprint spans 118,385 net rentable square feet across 841 climate-controlled units.

| Property | Address | Vintage | Units | NRSF |
|----------|---------|---------|-------|------|
| UpLift Homewood | 480 Wildwood Circle N. | 2021 | 385 | 46,850 |
| UpLift Birmingham | 3240 Veterans Circle | 2016 | 456 | 52,125 |
| **Portfolio total** | | | **841** | **118,385** |

[Marcus & Millichap's LeClaire-Schlosser Group brokered the seller's process in August 2026](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/uplift-self-storage-birmingham-homewood-portfolio-august-2026), highlighting Homewood as Alabama's third-wealthiest city with trade-area household incomes above $114,000. The Veterans Circle asset draws from a top-rated northeastern Birmingham school district.

Sundance Bay identified the trade as its first storage investment in the Birmingham metropolitan area. That matters for a Salt Lake City-based sponsor that has stacked Texas closings in 2026 while testing whether Southeast scarcity trades clear at institutional yields.

---

## How Does the $11 Million Price Read Against Comparable Deals?

At $13,080 per unit and roughly $93 per net rentable square foot, Sundance Bay paid for newer-vintage suburban product in a market where brokers described competitive bidding on scarce Class A supply.

The price sits below [Clarion Partners' $22,417-per-unit Plantation, Florida, lease-up trade](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/clarion-partners-plantation-florida-935-unit-acquisition-september-2026) from the same week but above many distressed Sun Belt dispositions. Birmingham is not Phoenix or Tampa. The underwriting case is income quality and limited entitled land, not population growth alone.

September 2026 deal flow shows buyers sorting by risk type:

| Deal | Price signal | Thesis |
|------|-------------|--------|
| Sundance Bay Birmingham (841 units) | $13,080/unit | Class A suburban scarcity |
| [Inland Joliet (859 units)](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/inland-devon-joliet-illinois-859-unit-acquisition-september-2026) | Undisclosed | Chicago exurb Class A rebrand |
| [Clarion Plantation (935 units)](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/clarion-partners-plantation-florida-935-unit-acquisition-september-2026) | $22,417/unit | South Florida lease-up |
| [Treasure Cove Fort Pierce (216 units)](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/treasure-cove-storage-fort-pierce-sale-september-2026) | Undisclosed | Florida value-add at 25% occupied |

Sundance Bay's Alabama buy is a stabilized-to-core suburban trade, not a lease-up gamble or a distressed REIT recycle.

---

## Why Is Sundance Bay Still Buying After Its Fort Worth Close?

The Birmingham portfolio closed in the same acquisition window as [Sundance Bay's 1,086-unit Fort Worth purchase](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/sundance-bay-fort-worth-extra-space-rebrand-august-2026), where Extra Space took third-party management and rebranding duties on a 2022-2024 vintage asset.

Fort Worth was a sponsor-operator flip with a national REIT management layer. Birmingham looks like a hold-and-operate play on scarce suburban Class A boxes where the seller already proved demand in affluent trade areas.

Sundance Bay called the Birmingham deal its 11th and 12th self-storage acquisition in 12 months on LinkedIn. That pace puts the firm in the same conversation as [List Self Storage's August 2026 buyer-pattern analysis](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/list-self-storage-august-deal-roundup-buyer-patterns-september-2026), which found private equity and institutional capital active in the $10 million to $25 million bucket while REITs funded platform M&A.

The sponsor's thesis is geographic diversification within a single asset class: Texas for DFW growth corridors, Alabama for infill scarcity, each with a different operating playbook.

---

## What Should Operators Take From the Sundance Bay Trade?

**Scarcity still clears.** National data shows advertised rents down 1.6% year over year in July 2026, per [Yardi Matrix's August outlook](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/yardi-matrix-august-2026-improving-occupancy-slowing-supply-2026). Birmingham Class A scarcity trades still attracted a competitive process and a named institutional buyer at $11 million.

**Vintage matters more than ever.** A 2021 Homewood build with modern climate control commands a different buyer pool than a 1990s conversion. Sundance Bay bought both vintages in one portfolio, packaging affluence (Homewood) with growth corridor demand (Veterans Circle).

**Seller anonymity does not hide the buyer.** [August's broker announcement](https://www.yourcaio.co/news/uplift-self-storage-birmingham-homewood-portfolio-august-2026) documented the process. September's Birmingham Business Journal report named Sundance Bay and the price. Two articles, one trade, full transparency on who is still writing checks.

---

## The Numbers Worth Writing Down

- **Buyer:** Sundance Bay (Salt Lake City-based private equity)
- **Price:** $11 million ($13,080/unit, ~$93/NRSF)
- **Units:** 841 across two properties
- **Rentable SF:** 118,385
- **Homewood:** 385 units, 46,850 NRSF, built 2021
- **Birmingham:** 456 units, 52,125 NRSF, built 2016
- **Acquisition count:** 11th and 12th in 12 months (per Sundance Bay)
- **Broker (seller side):** Marcus & Millichap LeClaire-Schlosser Group

---

## Private Equity Is Not Waiting for a National Recovery

Sundance Bay did not buy Birmingham because self-storage sector fundamentals turned bullish in September 2026. The firm bought because two Class A suburban assets in scarce trade areas traded at a price institutional capital could underwrite without betting on a housing rebound.

At $13,080 per unit, the trade says newer-vintage scarcity in the Southeast still clears. The question for independent owners in similar markets is whether the next buyer at that basis is another PE sponsor or a REIT platform looking to fill a geographic hole.

---

## Sources

- [Two metro self-storage properties sell to PE firm for $11M](https://www.bizjournals.com/birmingham/news/2026/09/10/sundance-self-storage.html), Birmingham Business Journal
- [Sundance Bay LinkedIn closing announcement](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/sundance-bay_just-closed-birmingham-al-msa-2-property-activity-7500302818566721536-xbS_), Sundance Bay
- [LeClaire-Schlosser Group Announces Sale of UpLift Self Storage 2-Property Portfolio](https://leclaireschlossergroup.com/news-single/the-leclaire-schlosser-group-of-marcus-millichap-arranges-the-sale-of-uplift-self-storage-2-in-alabama/), Marcus & Millichap
- [Self-Storage Real Estate Acquisitions and Sales: August 2026](https://www.insideselfstorage.com/self-storage-investing-real-estate/self-storage-real-estate-acquisitions-and-sales-august-2026), Inside Self-Storage

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How much did Sundance Bay pay for the Birmingham and Homewood self-storage portfolio?

Sundance Bay paid $11 million for the two-property portfolio, per the Birmingham Business Journal on September 10, 2026. The assets total 841 units and 118,385 rentable square feet across Birmingham and Homewood, Alabama, working out to roughly $13,080 per unit.

### Who sold the UpLift Self Storage portfolio to Sundance Bay?

Marcus & Millichap's LeClaire-Schlosser Group marketed the two-property UpLift Self Storage portfolio in August 2026. The seller identity was not disclosed in Sundance Bay's announcement or the Birmingham Business Journal report. Both parties requested anonymity in broker materials.

### What properties are in the Sundance Bay Birmingham portfolio?

The portfolio includes UpLift Homewood at 480 Wildwood Circle North (385 units, 46,850 NRSF, built 2021) and UpLift Birmingham at 3240 Veterans Circle (456 units, 52,125 NRSF, built 2016). Both are climate-controlled Class A facilities in affluent suburban trade areas.

### How active has Sundance Bay been in self-storage acquisitions?

Sundance Bay called the Birmingham deal its 11th and 12th self-storage acquisition in the past 12 months on August 31, 2026. The firm also closed a 1,086-unit Fort Worth asset in August 2026 and expanded in Austin through AAA Storage in June 2026.

### Why did Sundance Bay target Birmingham and Homewood specifically?

Brokers highlighted scarce newer-vintage Class A supply in both trade areas, with Homewood ranking as Alabama's third-wealthiest city and household incomes above $114,000. Sundance Bay is buying infill suburban scarcity rather than scale plays in higher-supply Sun Belt corridors.

---

Cite as: David Cartolano, "Sundance Bay Paid $11 Million for an 841-Unit Birmingham and Homewood, Alabama, Portfolio in September 2026," YourCAIO.co, 2026-09-14, https://www.yourcaio.co/news/sundance-bay-birmingham-homewood-11-million-acquisition-september-2026