There are many different reasons that you could be hunting for office space. You may have just started a new business and need a home base. You could be looking for somewhere larger than your current spot, or perhaps in a more convenient location.
But once you’ve decided that yes, this is the right decision; what are some tips to making sure you make the right office space choice? Consider the following five pieces of advice – narrow your search to relevant listings instead of general ones, don’t sign any contracts before actually going to a space, think about city vs. suburban location possibilities, have a checklist to go through, and keep traffic and travel in mind.
Narrow Your Search To Relevant Listings
Don’t cast too wide of a net when starting to look for office space. For example, if you’re in the Atlanta area, look for office space in Atlanta, rather than office space in the entire state of Georgia. Having few options right away will get you to focus on just the places that are an actual possibility geographically, instead of just any office spaces in general that meet other less concrete criteria.
Don’t Sign Anything Before Seeing a Space
Though it may be tempting to sign a contract for office space in a new area, for instance, a new city that you’re moving to, don’t actually agree to anything until you’ve set foot in the actual space. You can see beautiful pictures of office spaces, but there are ways that certain advertisers can potentially alter photographs or put spaces in a better light than actually exists. Plus, it’s important to know what the exterior area of a place looks like as well.
Think About City Vs. Suburban Locations
There’s a huge difference in pricing and convenience when it comes to office spaces in cities vs. suburbs. There are pros and cons to each, so make sure early on in your decision-making process that you know which of those two broad categories you’re most interested in, and keep your focus there.
Go Through a Checklist
Find a checklist that makes sense to you, and don’t deviate too far from your plan of finding exactly the right type of office space that you need. The primary elements will be that you and your employees are happy there, and clients feel like it’s a professional place to visit.
Keep Traffic and Travel In Mind
And what about traffic and travel? If you find the perfect space, but it takes forever to get there, or it’s expensive to park near it, that may be a deal-breaker. It’s important to take those details into consideration before signing any kind of lease or contract.