Office Space NJ

How much do you know about office space?

Thirty-one years ago I got into the commercial real estate business. It was quite fortuitous. I was taking ballroom dancing lessons and my instructor asked me if my wife and I wanted to join her and her boyfirend after the next lesson. We did and it turned out he owned a commercial real estate brokerage company and offered to hire me as an office leasing broker. I literally knew nothing about real estate before I got the job. Now, thirty-one years later, I know a lot. I learn something new every day. I read real estate magazines and trade papers and my company is constantly supplying information. This is the total focus of my business life, (notice I didn't say my entire life). So what's my point? Simple, if a landlord hires me to help lease office space in his building, and you come along with an interest who is in a better position to win in the negotiations? If knowledge if power, then I can totally dominate. What if you brought me along on your side? Now, at least you have a fair match.

Next question...How much do market conditions affect the outcome of negotiations? If it's a fair match, as described above, then market conditions can rule very strongly. If it's not a fair match, then the stronger side will dominate. In other words, two well matched real estate experts will end the negotiations within a relatively narrow range for a deal as determined by market factors, while two unequally matched parties can be pushed all over the map.

Conclusion...Which works best for you? Thought so. Get a knowledgable, experienced and respected broker on your side and you will do far better for yourself.

Planning Early Eliminates Wasted Effort

Over my thirty-one year career as a real estate broker specializing in office space, I have seen both good and bad examples of how to conduct the relocation search process. One of the primary differences is the effort invested in the beginning of the process to fully understand the requirement. This is commonly referred to as "needs analysis". It is so important that if it is not done, you will probably be wasting a great deal of your own time.

Its easy to understand why that would be, since each space and each building is unique and your requirements, though they probably have some flexibility, have certain characteristics that are needed to benefit your business. By way of example, some companies have a high volume of incoming and outgoing mail. It would be highly advantageous for such companies to have an exit door directly to the mail room so that the delivery people can pick-up and deliver to one convenient spot and the mail can easily be distributed from that location. Other companies have many visitors and want their space visible from the elevator or lobby as the case may be.

The best approach to begin a relocation search is to first think about your current space in a critical manner. What works and what could work better? Then think about what the most efficient functioning of your business would be like. Now construct a model, (draw a picture in as much detail as you can) of what that would look like. Once you have completed this exercise you will be prepared to work with the professionals in the process of finding the right space for your company.

Next, you need to have an idea of the cost of the space. In order to do that you need to have an understanding of the current market in your geographic area. If you can consider various geographies, you will need to gain knowledge of each. The basic points of information you need are: How many spaces are currently on the market that can accommodate your space requirement? What is the overall vacancy factor in the specific market area? What is the asking rental rate? What concessions are common for the size and type space you require? What were the taking rents on the last few deals done recently in the market? A good office leasing broker will have that information. They should be able to present you with a professionally prepared market report and review with you those statistics that specifically relate to your situation. As we all know, statistics can be misleading, so having your broker interpret the report for you is extremely important. Just imagine how off-base you could be if you thought a market had a 20% vacancy, when 18% of that vacant space was totally antiquated space that most companies would never occupy.

 One important tip that may seem obvious... make sure you accurately and completely communicate the information concerning your requirements to your broker and space planner so they can hone-in on opportunities that will best fit your company's needs. Then, if your broker isn't showing you properties that suit your needs, you probably are not working with the right broker.