Questions To Ask When Renting Office Space
http://www.contractortalk.com/articles/articles/5/1/Questions-To-Ask-When-Renting-Office-Space/Page1.html
Thomas Kral
Thomas Kral is the founder of Reliable American, Inc.
Reliable American is a firm specializing in roofing and exterior remodeling. www.ReliableAmerican.us
By Thomas Kral
Published on 05/31/2007
When renting office space it is important that you have all the information you need to make an educated decision. Below are some common questions which will determine if the space you are interested in, is right for you.
Questions To Ask When Renting Office Space
When renting office space it is important that you have all the information you need to make an educated decision. Below are some common questions which will determine if the space you are interested in, is right for you.
• How many square feet is the space? Is that rentable or actual Square feet?
• What is the monthly rent?
• Are there any additional fees such as taxes, assessments etc?
• How long is the lease term?
• What type of deposit do you require? First month’s rent + last month’s rent?
• Are utilities such as electric, heat and air conditioning included?
• Do I have control of my own thermostat or is it controlled elsewhere? If controlled elsewhere, what are the settings?
• Are janitorial services included? If so what and how often?
• How many parking spaces am I allowed, and are those spaces assigned? If the spots are assigned, where are my spots?
• Am I allowed to park over night?
• What type of security does this building offer? Cameras, security guard etc?
• Who is responsible for repairs of the area within and outside my unit? (Some leases will require the tenant to make any repairs within the unit.)
• How soon will complaints be addressed from the time the complaint is filed? For example if my toilet stops working how soon will it be fixed?
• What type of signage am I allowed? Mail box, building directory, street, window? Who pays for this?
You will want to do a reality check with your own tape measure in terms of square footage. Often times what you are told and what exists are two different things. Sometimes the landlord will have measured from exterior wall instead of interior wall, and sometimes they may just have gotten two units confused.
The difference between rental and actual square feet is often time 15%. The land lord is charging you for use of the common area, so if you are renting a unit with the actual square footage of 1000, they will often say the space is 1150 Rentable square feet. At the same time some land lords will escalate the price per square foot and advertise the actual square footage. The end result is the same price typically, however it could cause problems to move into a space 15% smaller than you thought it would be and do not have room for your furniture.
Monthly rent is self explanatory, however there are often times other fees. Some landlords will split the tax bill based on your square footage. It is important to know this, if you haven’t budgeted for the tax bill. The land lord will usually give a low cost per square foot, and have a general idea of the amount the tax bill will be, and the dates it will be due.
Knowing who pays the electric is a must. Some landlords will pay it and mark it into the rent, some will pay it but add a line to your invoice based on your square footage. Sometimes each unit will have a separate electrical service and you will have to activate that service with your local energy provider.
Know who pays for your Heating and air conditioning. If you are paying for the unit’s electric is the equipment running on your service or the landlord’s?
Control of the thermostat is important. Some office situations will have one thermostat shared amongst multiple offices. It may be warm in one office and cold in another. If you do not have control ask what temperatures the units will be kept. Also know your local code of occupation which dictates the minimum temperatures. Typically the minimum in the winter is 68. If you do not have control of your thermostat you may also want to ask if space heaters are allowed, just in case.
If janitorial service is included, what level of service is provided? Do the janitors clean only the common area or do they also enter the units? If they do enter the units what will they are doing once in the units? Are the people entering the units background checked? If janitorial service is not provided in your unit know where you may empty your trash.
Parking is sometimes an issue in some buildings. If you intend to put 6 people in your office space, but are only allowed parking for 4 you may have a problem. And what if customers come to visit, where will they park? If you want to park work vehicles overnight, some land lords may have a policy against this. Also if parking spaces are assigned, know which spaces are yours and have those spaces written into the lease.
Leases will vary, and some landlords will claim responsibility for repair of exterior maintenance while others claim responsibility for all maintenance. Know your maintenance responsibility and factor it into your budget.
Some landlords may take issue with signage. Often times no signage is allowed, other than what is provided by the landlord on the mailbox, building directory and sometimes your door. If you intent on placing signs know what is and isn’t allowed.
• How many square feet is the space? Is that rentable or actual Square feet?
• What is the monthly rent?
• Are there any additional fees such as taxes, assessments etc?
• How long is the lease term?
• What type of deposit do you require? First month’s rent + last month’s rent?
• Are utilities such as electric, heat and air conditioning included?
• Do I have control of my own thermostat or is it controlled elsewhere? If controlled elsewhere, what are the settings?
• Are janitorial services included? If so what and how often?
• How many parking spaces am I allowed, and are those spaces assigned? If the spots are assigned, where are my spots?
• Am I allowed to park over night?
• What type of security does this building offer? Cameras, security guard etc?
• Who is responsible for repairs of the area within and outside my unit? (Some leases will require the tenant to make any repairs within the unit.)
• How soon will complaints be addressed from the time the complaint is filed? For example if my toilet stops working how soon will it be fixed?
• What type of signage am I allowed? Mail box, building directory, street, window? Who pays for this?
You will want to do a reality check with your own tape measure in terms of square footage. Often times what you are told and what exists are two different things. Sometimes the landlord will have measured from exterior wall instead of interior wall, and sometimes they may just have gotten two units confused.
The difference between rental and actual square feet is often time 15%. The land lord is charging you for use of the common area, so if you are renting a unit with the actual square footage of 1000, they will often say the space is 1150 Rentable square feet. At the same time some land lords will escalate the price per square foot and advertise the actual square footage. The end result is the same price typically, however it could cause problems to move into a space 15% smaller than you thought it would be and do not have room for your furniture.
Monthly rent is self explanatory, however there are often times other fees. Some landlords will split the tax bill based on your square footage. It is important to know this, if you haven’t budgeted for the tax bill. The land lord will usually give a low cost per square foot, and have a general idea of the amount the tax bill will be, and the dates it will be due.
Knowing who pays the electric is a must. Some landlords will pay it and mark it into the rent, some will pay it but add a line to your invoice based on your square footage. Sometimes each unit will have a separate electrical service and you will have to activate that service with your local energy provider.
Know who pays for your Heating and air conditioning. If you are paying for the unit’s electric is the equipment running on your service or the landlord’s?
Control of the thermostat is important. Some office situations will have one thermostat shared amongst multiple offices. It may be warm in one office and cold in another. If you do not have control ask what temperatures the units will be kept. Also know your local code of occupation which dictates the minimum temperatures. Typically the minimum in the winter is 68. If you do not have control of your thermostat you may also want to ask if space heaters are allowed, just in case.
If janitorial service is included, what level of service is provided? Do the janitors clean only the common area or do they also enter the units? If they do enter the units what will they are doing once in the units? Are the people entering the units background checked? If janitorial service is not provided in your unit know where you may empty your trash.
Parking is sometimes an issue in some buildings. If you intend to put 6 people in your office space, but are only allowed parking for 4 you may have a problem. And what if customers come to visit, where will they park? If you want to park work vehicles overnight, some land lords may have a policy against this. Also if parking spaces are assigned, know which spaces are yours and have those spaces written into the lease.
Leases will vary, and some landlords will claim responsibility for repair of exterior maintenance while others claim responsibility for all maintenance. Know your maintenance responsibility and factor it into your budget.
Some landlords may take issue with signage. Often times no signage is allowed, other than what is provided by the landlord on the mailbox, building directory and sometimes your door. If you intent on placing signs know what is and isn’t allowed.