Business Tips: Renting a Commercial Office Space

When you begin a business, the most cost-effective and sensible place to start is working at home. By working from a home office, you’re able to reduce a lot of your expenses. However, there will come a time when your business outgrows your home, and this is when you’ll need to look into leasing a commercial property or a small warehouse space for rent in Woodbury for storage.

Taking Care of Business

When you decide to rent a commercial space, you will need to work out what you need from the space.

The last thing you want to do is rush into renting the first space you see just because you’re hyped up for the move or desperate for space. So the first job to take care of is writing a list of things you really need from your office. Some of the aspects to consider are:

• The amount of space you need
• The ideal location for your business
• Kitchen, lounges, meeting rooms, storage, reception area
• Furnished or unfurnished
• Parking spaces
• Telecommunications
• Light, ventilation

Additionally, it’s worth adding to the list by creating a wants section. In this section, write down the things you would like your office to have but that are not necessarily essential for the move. For example, the wants list could include things such as open office spaces, large windows, carpeted floors, already decorated, or fully fitted.

The Budget for the Move

When you know what you need, you must establish how much you can afford to spend each month or year. Consider all the costs involved in the move, such as deposits, rent, service fees, and maintenance costs. Add on extras for the actual cost of moving your home office items to the new office space, buying new furniture and equipment, and decorating.

There are going to be plenty of other expenses to consider, too. So don’t make the mistake of only considering the cost of the lease. Work out how much you’ll be able to afford on lighting, energy, security, and telecommunications, too. Remember, these costs may rise and fall at different times of the year; therefore, it is worth considering the most expensive periods and using them in your calculations.

Finding the Right Property

Now that you have your needs, wants, and budget information, it’s time to go office hunting. You could search for the private property yourself to remove some of the fees associated with using agents, but it will be time-consuming.

An agent will be able to narrow down the search for you so that you’re able to continuing working as much as possible until you find the right locations worth visiting.

Before you sign a contract, make sure you have checked over the property and the terms of the lease. It’s a sensible idea to have a lawyer go over the paperwork for you to avoid any misunderstandings.

Once you’ve moved into the office space, the work isn’t quite complete. You’ll need to contact someone like www.santam.co.za to acquire suitable business insurance to protect your items. While the cost of expanding may seem extensive at first glance, once your business outgrows the home, you know it’s moving in the right direction.