YOU NEED TO HAVE AN ESTIMATE

In order to save yourself from the havoc of insufficient parking spaces for your Chicagoland office space for your business and your personal, you need to have a good estimate of the number of clients that visit you per day, and the total number of your employees. This will determine the amount of the parking spaces you need. With this information, your tenant representation broker can help you to get a suitable commercial office space for you.

HOW GREAT IS THE PARKING FACILITY?

After your broker has found you the commercial office building that fits into your requirement then it becomes pertinent for you to check it out. You might need to take a tour around the building for you to confirm the parking capacity, whether it has extra parking advantages among others. It should be noted that some buildings have overflowing parking spaces and short term parking spaces, however, these are enforced separately. Information might not be given to you if you fail to ask, thus, you need to ask questions based on the strict adherence to your parking requirement.

RESERVED OR OPEN PARKING SPOTS?

Some landlords in the Chicagoland area provide reserved parking spots system i.e. leaving some parking spaces specifically for a set of people. To save yourself from the presumption that all the parking spots are open to everyone, you need to ask questions! Ask questions as to whether the parking spaces are reserved or not. If the former is the case, and a price is attached to it, then you should be ready to negotiate your price and terms.

SPELL OUT ALL THE TERMS RELATED TO THE OFFICE SPACE CLEARLY

Most of the time, office space tenants often fail to explicitly state the terms of the lease of both the building and the parking spaces in their lease document. You should ensure that all the necessary terms of the office lease are explicitly stated in the lease document for future and legal use.

TENANT ADVISORS WILL SAVE YOU THE STRESS AND MONEY

Instead of wasting your money and productive time to tour, negotiate, and to ensure the due process for your smooth office space lease, you can just hire Tenant Advisors, Inc.. Tenant Advisors, Inc. is a commercial real estate firm in the Chicagoland area that provides aggressive and unbiased representation to office space tenants throughout Chicago and the surrounding suburbs FREE for the tenants. You will pay us no money to represent you; our bill will be paid by your landlord. Also, it should be of a greater interest for you to know that we neither own any real estate nor represent any real estate owners, just tenants only! That means you can count on us for unbiased interest.

Our highly skilled and ever reliable staff will walk you through the process, help you to understand the lease or purchase agreements. They will also ensure that all the necessary terms including the terms and the consideration of the parking spaces are included.

Contact us today by filling out our form and we will get back to you within 24 hours. With our FREE service, you can be on your way to obtaining the office space of your choice.

Here are a few things to know about cubicles in today’s office space:

Distractions Are More Apparent With Cubicles

When you have a cubicle setup within the office, you’ll find that your employees tend to get distracted more easily. The constant foot traffic, conversations and office machinery noise will interrupt your employees in their daily work and make it less likely for them to concentrate. When you have individual office space and less cubicle-like structures throughout the office, you’ll find that your employees are more productive and happier while accomplishing their daily work.

Cramped Setups Often Cause Work Disruption

An employee who is comfortable at work is one who will get more done throughout the day, and do so with peace of mind. Cubicles often equate with cramped setups and leave your employees looking for extra room, not only for their belongings but to allow them to sit easily and comfortably. Consider taking down the confined walls of the cubicle or expanding the walls so that it is more like a single office space but not completely closed in like one. You’ll find that your employees work with greater ease, and a more positive attitude as well.

Cubicles Are Not The Best Health-Wise For Your Employees

Cubicles hinder mobility and, for this reason, may be one of a variety of contributing factors related to certain health conditions. Those who work in constricted spaces every day are less mobile, less active and may be more likely to be at risk of experiencing various health conditions, such as Type 2 diabetes, heart conditions and more. This sedentary work setup will make it easier for the employee to stay seated too long and not be as mobile as others who have their own office or are located in a more open setting where they are able to move around more often.

Making the Decision to Omit Cubicles

Many business owners like the aspect of cubicles because they allow the employer to fit a good amount of employees within the office space and provide each employee with a bit of their own private space, even though it’s not a completely closed-off office area. However, if possible, it may be wise to redesign the office in a cost-efficient manner to thereby eliminate the cubicles and produce a more employee-friendly setup.

Some employers may like to make all executive decisions without consulting their employees while others may be more open to employee input on office space layouts. If you fall within the latter category, provide your employees with a few possible office space layout options and ask them which office space layout works best for them and the reasons why this is so. By having this information, you may find that cubicles should be eliminated, or maintained, and know which layout will be best suitable for your employees and provide them with a seating area which allows them to be most productive and content.

Create a Quiet Workspace

The best way to ensure employee productivity is to create a quiet workspace. With so many office distractions, it’s vital to create a workplace where your employees can concentrate and focus on their work. In this case, an open office space layout may not always be best. If it’s possible to set up noise-blocking cubicles or even seat employees in their own individual offices, you will find that productivity will be a given and your employees are sure to thank you for that feature.

Maintain a Welcoming Work Environment

In addition to creating a quiet workspace, you also want to ensure that the office environment is a welcoming one. Eye-catching wall art and plants will create a welcoming feel to the office space. It’s also helpful if your break room is stocked with coffee and the occasional breakfast treats, which will help your employees to be comfortable and happy being an employee within your company. It will often be the little things which make a world of a difference.

Arrange the Office Space So All Amenities Are Close By

Employees also appreciate an office space layout where amenities are situated close by. Copiers, fax machines and even restrooms which are in a semi-close environment will be advantageous to employees and make their work environment a more accessible one.

Ensure That Office Furniture Is Comfortable and Useful

It’s also important to select office furniture which will be comfortable for your employees. After all, many office employees are at work 8, 10, even 12 hours a day, so you want to be sure that you create a comfortable office space where the seating is inviting, the desk setup is convenient for your workers to access on a daily basis and more. An employee who has a proper office setup, which includes comfortable furnishings which are convenient and useful, is one who will be a productive worker and an asset to your company or corporation.

Employees not only want to be appreciated in the workplace but they also want to be provided with an office setup which will offer the most comfortable and useful features possible. If your employee has what they need in their individual office space on a daily basis, they will best be able to carry out their duties and produce a work product which you will be proud to offer to your clients. In addition, by making sure your employees are comfortable, you will be showing those individuals that you are dedicated to making the workplace a welcoming and productive one.

1. Money Savings

Renting a shared office space is a great way to save money. These spaces are often much less expensive than renting a traditional office space. This is because when you rent a traditional space, you are required to pay for all additional needs and equipment such as lighting, Internet, custodial services, and even hiring a receptionist. With a shared office space, these items are included in the cost already.

2. Networking Capabilities

Another great added benefit of a shared office space is the great networking capabilities it provides. By sharing an office space, you are provided with instant access to other businesses. This makes it much easier to network and gives you great ideas that you may not have had otherwise. This can provide you with ways to expand your business.

3. Meeting Space

A shared office space usually comes with a dedicated meeting space. Sometimes it can be hard to meet with clients in places such as coffee shops or other public spaces. It may even seem unprofessional. With a shared office space automatically included, this takes the guess work out of where to meet clients and gives your business an edge up over others without these facilities.

A shared office space is a great option for a business that is just getting started. It provides you with automatic amenities so that you can focus on your business instead of worrying about the essentials. It also provides you with great networking opportunities to help expand and promote your business. You can find shared office space in Chicago for your business needs.

1. Strategy Development – When looking to either move your business or to renew your lease it is important to consider what your strategic plan is for the space. Experts are able to achieve maximum value and flexibility within the market to your best advantage.
2. Extensive Market Experience – A broker will not be playing “both sides of the fence” so to speak. So when looking for space options, an expert will be able to leverage their existing relationships with previous tenants, landlords and brokers to ensure lowest prices possible for your business.
3. Financial Analysis – A financial analysis will be performed by your tenant advisor to enable you to shop spaces and price ranges that fit your overall strategy. This budget planning can help with how much you pay overtime and to make sure that your investment is safe.

Consider all of the options when choosing tenant representation for your company. Are you looking for Chicago commercial tenant advisors? Check out TenantAdvisors.com for more information about finding your perfect commercial space in Chicago.

Inquire About Parking Right Away

When you are interested in a particular office space and are at the point of seriously considering leasing the chosen location, make sure you inquire about parking options right away, especially if parking is a must for you. This is a lease term which can often make or break a leasing commitment and force you to look elsewhere, especially if parking is what you want but not what you will receive if you lease that particular office space.

Find Out Whether Parking is Open or Reserved

Leasing will either be open or reserved in nature. With an open parking arrangement, you will have access to parking at a garage or lot but not receive designated spots, which means if the lot fills up, you are out of luck. With a reserved parking situation, you will have set office space parking and know that when you pull into your office parking lot, your parking spot will be available. This is often an important component for office space tenants to consider.

Ask About Client Parking Options

Even if you know that you will have office space parking for both you and your employees, you may not have parking spots available for your clients. It’s important to ask about this issue, and then determine if client parking is a necessity or not. Client parking is often an attractive feature as many customers and clients like to deal with businesses which offer ease of access to their facilities.

Make Sure Parking Terms are Included Within the Lease

Even though you may have discussed parking terms and agreed that these features will be included with your tenancy, you must put it into writing and ensure that the lease contains the term related to parking. Rather than have a statement to the effect of “parking is included,” you should insert information related to how many parking spaces are included, whether parking is reserved or open, if clients may have access to parking spots while doing business with your company and other specific parking terms. Once the parking terms are included within the lease, you can rest assured that parking spaces will be available to you during your commercial office space tenancy.

Parking may not be a must-have inclusion for certain office space tenants. However, for others, having the access to parking for both employees and clients is a necessity which simply cannot be omitted from an office space tenancy. So long as you determine your parking needs, inquire about parking options and ensure that you will have parking spaces available to you, your company and clients, plus include such terms within the lease, your office space lease will consist of the pertinent items you need to do business efficiently.

In the same discussion, common area costs will come up as well. Commercial tenants not only have to pay for the space that they use alone but also share the cost for maintaining the common areas with other tenants. The calculations may be a bit intimidating at first, however, with the right background information and a good tenant representative by your side, you’ll be able to figure out the details in no time.

What is Useable Square Footage?

When you want to calculate useable square footage, this will be the figure relating to the amount of space which you actively use. For example, your useable square footage is the square footage of your single office within an office building, if you lease an office space of this type.

What is Rentable Square Footage?

Rentable square footage is the amount of space which will include your office but also the restrooms, closets and other areas.

What is the Common Area Factor?

The common area factor is the amount of space which is shared by all office space tenants. This will include bathrooms, cleaning closets, lobbies, copy rooms and other shared sections of the office building. There are two main types of common areas: floor common area and building common area. The floor common area is the amount of tenant common areas which are located on your floor while the building common area is the part which everyone within the building shares. These two figures are added up to equal the total common area factor.

How Do These All Add Up?

Calculating the square footage figures can be difficult for new office space tenants but tenant representatives are well-versed in these types of calculations and will gladly help you to calculate the figures with ease. The basic calculation is rentable square footage = useable square footage x (1 + add-on %). The add-on percentage can be calculated this way: rentable square footage/useable square footage – 1. The add-on percentage is sometimes substituted with a common area factor percentage and you can determine which percentage your prospective landlord uses simply by inquiring with them.

These factors show that there is much more to commercial office space rent than just a flat figure. There are distinct calculations which go into determining commercial office space rent and these figures will dictate how much you pay for an office space you use as well as common areas which you share with other tenants. Understanding these figures is much easier to do when you have a tenant representative along with you for any and all negotiations. Your tenant representative will explain these factors in layperson terms and help you out with any questions which you may have along the way.

Why The Landlord Wants This Lease Term Included

A commercial landlord likes to have this type of term included within the lease because it is a safeguard for them, and a monetary one at that, should an interested party want to lease a larger office space which could be available should the landlord move a current tenant into a different space. This type of lease term enables the landlord to rent out more of their office space and gain  more income simply from doing so.

Although this is a standard lease term, it is one which not all landlords are able to have included due to some resistance from office space tenants at the time of the lease signing. Should the landlord be successful in having the office space tenant agree to this term, the landlord will be responsible for all costs associated with the tenant relocation should the landlord opt to put this lease term into play.

Why The Tenant Doesn’t Want This Lease Term Included

Frequently, an office space tenant will not want this type of lease term included within their commercial office space lease. Those who lease office space, usually choose their office space of choice due to its location, size, view and more. After all, why would the tenant want to be moved around after they carefully select their office space? However, during the negotiations and prior to signing the lease, this term often comes up in conversation and has to be decided upon at that point.

How an Office Tenant Can Have This Term Excluded

Most commercial tenants would want this term excluded. Therefore, it’s important to review the lease terms thoroughly to make sure relocation provisions are not included or, if they are, this can be discussed during lease negotiations with the landlord prior to signing the lease. By removing the relocation provisions term from the lease, you will ensure that you will not have to move to another spot during the lease, simply because the landlord wants to make more money off of an additional tenant who may want to occupy your space. Should the landlord not agree to omitting the relocation provisions term, just be sure that it is as fair to you, the tenant, as possible and that you know what could happen in the future should the relocation provisions term be put into play.

Why Is Signage Important?

First and foremost, you want the proper signage outside of the leased commercial office space advertising your business so customers can find you, whether they are current customers or prospective ones. When you have the proper signage, your customer base will improve as will your business’ income. This type of advertisement is the easiest way to draw people in and a cost-efficient method as well.

Why Might Landlords Restrict the Use of Signs?

There are a few different reasons why landlords may restrict the use of signs by their commercial tenants. First, they may not have the room to allow all tenants to put up signs, especially if there are many office space tenants within the building. Also, there may be city restrictions and zoning laws regarding signage, which wouldn’t be the landlord’s fault but simply something which prevents the tenant from advertising at the building. In addition, the landlord may not want a bunch of signs all over the building and simply restrict signage for that purpose alone. These are some of the more common reasons why landlords don’t want signs on their property.

How Does the Tenant Go About Getting Their Sign Up and Presence Known?

The best way to get your sign posted, whether it is a stand-alone sign only promoting your business or your name on a large sign alongside all of the other office tenants within the building, is to negotiate properly with the landlord during the lease negotiations. Some landlords will be flexible with regard to signage and, in this case, getting your sign posted is not a big deal. However, for other landlords who may be more hesitant to allow signs, you’re going to want to negotiate this factor prior to signing the lease.

If the landlord refuses to allow you to put up a stand-alone sign, see if they would agree to an addition to a sign already posted which has other office space tenants listed on it. This shouldn’t make or break the lease deal, however, if it is that important to you as a tenant, which it should be, try to work with the landlord to get some sort of signage posted. After all, if people don’t know where you are located or new customers can’t come across your business with ease, this will hurt you as a business owner. Negotiation is key so try to work with the landlord to secure some type of signage along with your commercial office space lease.

Business Owners Are Responsible for Rent Plus Operating Expenses

In addition to paying the set rent for the office space, commercial tenants will also pay operating expenses. These are items which the landlord must pay out in order to keep the building running. Some of these costs may include taxes, insurance, utilities, common area maintenance and more. Since these can be quite costly, it only makes sense to have the tenant share in some of the financial responsibility for operating features which they make use of as well.

The Costs Will Be Stated in the Lease

These operating costs may be few or many in number, depending on the individual commercial office, landlord, location and added features of the building itself. In order to have the right knowledge regarding what the tenant is responsible for and how much these items may cost on a monthly or annual basis, the operating expenses must be listed in the lease. The lease must be very detailed regarding what the tenant is required to pay, what the landlord will pay and how and when these payments are due.

Operating Expenses May Fluctuate Throughout the Lease Term

It would be nice if there were concrete numbers with regard to operating expenses, however, many times these operating expenses will fluctuate. In fact, most operating expenses will vary in amount but there is usually an average number for which the tenant can calculate approximately how much they will be paying in addition to the base rental payment. For most office space tenants, they will have to pay a portion of the operating expenses based on the amount of tenants in the office building, if more than a single tenant setting, and what the landlord requests in the lease. Although the portion of the operating expenses which the tenant needs to pay will be a set percentage, the cost of the operating expenses will still fluctuate.

The Best Way to Understand Operating Expenses Is With a Tenant Representative’s Help

Operating expenses can be a bit difficult to understand, especially if one is new to the commercial office space leasing arrangement. In order to have a good grasp as to what these operating expenses are and how much you will need to pay, having a tenant representative by your side during negotiations, lease signing and beyond will help. The tenant representative will thoroughly examine the operating expense clause and provide you with detailed information on what you will need to pay in addition to your commercial office space rent.