How to Find Property That Fits Your Business Needs
Whether you’re just launching your business and you need a place to call HQ, or you’ve outgrown your current office or retail space, there are some things you need to know before you begin your search. In this article, we’ll discuss everything from developing your budget to evaluating your spatial needs and coming up with alternatives when you need to.
Check out your options
For most people, the most exciting part about buying or renting a home is getting to look at all of the different options available to you. The same thing goes for commercial real estate or CRE for short. But this process is just as essential as it is exciting!
In order to find a space that makes sense for your business, you need to see what’s on the CRE marketplace. This way, you’ll be able to view the average prices of commercial spaces in your desired area, and you can equate that price with the kind of amenities you’d get.
Finalize your budget
Once you’ve had the chance to browse your local CRE marketplace, you can come back to your budget with a more realistic perspective. Maybe you found that you have plenty of budget to afford a larger space, or perhaps you’ll need to be more conservative. No matter what the outcome is, once you put some context into the numbers, your search becomes that much easier.
When you’re making your budget, you may want to give yourself some wiggle room by coming up with a minimum and maximum number. This will open up your search to many more options than if you were to stick to a hard and fast number.
Prioritize your wants and needs
You might have already had an idea of your needs and wants before you even started searching for a new commercial space, but now that you know what to expect as far as price points go, you’ll likely need to prioritize what’s most important to you. Here’s how:
- Make a two-column list
- Label one side “Needs” and the other side “Wants”
- Categorize each item on your list into either needs or wants
- Is an in-office kitchen a need or a want?
- Could you sacrifice an office space for a conference room?
- What kind of office layout does your staff prefer?
This process will bring you even more perspective when it comes to narrowing down your options.
ProTip: Be sure to provide your real estate agent with this information so they can tailor their search to your needs.
Return to the marketplace with a new perspective
So now that you know what’s out there, what your budget is, and what your priorities are, it’s time to dive right back into the commercial real estate market with your newfound perspective. Depending on all of the aforementioned, you might find some options that would work perfectly for your situation. Or, you may have to consider some other possibilities.
If you found yourself in the latter scenario, keep reading for more tips!
Consider alternatives and workarounds
Downsize your space
Keeping a commercial space up and running is expensive. In addition to your rental costs, you’ll have to pay for electricity, internet, water, trash, and maybe even parking. If this is too much for your small business’s budget to withstand, downsizing your spatial needs might be just the solution you’re looking for.
Many companies have abandoned their property expenses altogether by going fully remote with their business. This can be a great option for digital marketing companies, creatives, and tech companies because most of their work is done on the computer anyway. If you’re worried about productivity (like most business owners are), simply implement a time-tracking and project management system so that you can ensure everyone’s getting their work done efficiently.
And for those mandatory in-office meetings, rent out a coworking space just for the time you need, instead of signing onto a multi-year lease.
Rent office furniture
Another great way to reduce your commercial space expenses is to rent office furniture instead of buying it. Not only can this save you money, but it can also save you tons of time when you’re moving into your new space or when your business grows and you need new desks stat.
Takeaways
Whether you choose to lease, buy or ditch your commercial space, there are plenty of ways to find a space that fits your business’s unique needs.
