Are you in search of a new office space for your building? Here’s how to choose the perfect office space for rent so you and your employees can succeed.
A comfortable office space for yourself and your employees can make all the difference in workplace happiness. And that happiness can make all the difference in workplace production.
Happy employees are 12 percent more productive. Better productivity means better ROI, which means , more money; you get the picture. Finding a new office space for rent can make all the difference for your business.
But moving is daunting. You’ll need to find the perfect space, and that isn’t easy. Finding that perfect office space for rent means moving your entire office space somewhere new.
You need to ensure you’re choosing the right place. So without further ado, let’s break down how to find the perfect office space for rent.
Office Space for Rent 101
So you’re looking for an office space. You’re probably excited, and rightly so. Moving is an exciting experience. Out with the old and in with the new. But that doesn’t mean moving is always simple.
In fact, moving is decidedly not simple. You’ll need to first find a space, then pack your things, and finally, move. Packing and moving are annoying, but they’ll always work out.
It’s finding a space that becomes the issue. After all, you’re not the only company looking for office space. The competition is everywhere, and new companies emerge every day.
You need to know what you want when you want it. And you also need to go get it. Which is why when you’re looking for your next office space, you need to…
Plan a Budget
First thing’s first, you need a budget. This means understanding exactly how much capital you have available, and where it needs allocating. Take into account future expenses like , etc.
Anything that could cost more money in the future limits how much you can spend on your new office space. We can’t stress this enough. Do not rent based on what you can barely afford. You must plan for an increase in business costs or even a decrease in revenue.
Once you have an idea of what you can spend, it’s time to determine what’ll you’ll realistically end up spending. There’s a quick and easy way to determine your new monthly rent payments.
Multiply the square footage of your potential space by the base rent charge per square foot. Then add that number to the square footage times the common area maintenance charge per square foot.
While not exactly the amount of money you’ll owe per month, it’s a decent estimate to get you started looking at offices within your price range.
Use Your Resources
Once your budgets in place, it’s time to start the actual office hunt. This is both the fun and frustrating part. You’ll get to look at new offices but also deal with the logistics of find one that’s perfect for your company.
Start with a basic Google search. Googling office space for rent will yield search results for your area. You’ll likely see both individual offices as well as management companies. Either can work fine.
Let’s use an example for clarity’s sake. Say you’re looking for an office in Chicago. You could search “office space for rent” and scroll through the results. The first three are individual offices, but then you see “Chicago Level Office” in the results.
That management company has offices you’re interested in, and voila, you’re done. Now, not every search goes that well or that quickly, but that’s a general idea.
However, it’s also important to check other channels like Craigslist for office listings. Sometimes the hidden gems sit unnoticed because office managers fail to use hyper-local searches to find the best deals.
Check the Dimensions
It’s important to keep dimensions in mind when you’re looking at office space for rent. That means nothing if an office is both too big or too small. Something too big can cost your company too much money, and something too small can hinder both growth and employee happiness.
What’s more, the office dimensions also include looking at office setup. This means how your departments can interact within an office space. Would each department have its own space? Would every department have easy access to one another?
While it doesn’t seem that important, interoffice cohesion based on office design makes an enormous difference in how your environment works.
Read the Reviews
Or ask around. The idea is that you want to make sure you’re moving into the right office space. Once you sign the lease there’s not much you can do if you run into problems. Property managers, landlords and the like can all have negative effects on your workplace.
Start by reading reviews online. Most properties have plenty of reviews online from current or past customers. Just remember that lots of people leave negative reviews for small problems. People are apt to complain rather than praise.
From there, move onto talking with other businesses in the building. They’ll have all the answers to your specific questions having used the office space for an extended amount of time.
If you’re looking at an office space for rent, there’s no better resource than the current tenants.
Finding Your Office Space for Rent
While everything above is very important, and helpful, in finding your next office space, there’s one thing that tops them all. Always choose an office space based on your unique individual needs. Never choose because something is the “best” or flashiest.
Ultimately, everyone wants the nicest space money can buy. However, there’s more to running an office than having an excellent space. Yes, you want something nice, but you always need something that works for everyone.
Ask yourself the easy questions like “is the space within driving distance for everyone?” Don’t ever choose because you’re worried about being in the “best” building or the popular location.
If those things fit your needs then by all means, rent the office. But don’t let them cloud your judgment. There’s much more to happiness than choosing a space that’s near a trendy area.
