Getting a New Office Space: Everything You Need to Know

If you are a small business owner, you already know that you need adequate space for all your employees plus some extra space left over for expansion. In most cases, you will find this space and be ready to sign a lease in a month or two. After that, you just need to customise it and move in. On the other hand, you might not find the space you need, or the space you find might not fit into your particular use case. When this happens, you might consider getting a new office built and then customising it to your liking. If that’s your case, read below for some handy tips.

Altering an Existing Building

Sometimes, you might not have the funds to build a new office and might not find an office space that fits into your plans. In these cases, you might have to alter the office space you lease. Once you do this, you can ask if there will be a rebate that covers construction expenses. If such a plan exists, the building’s owner will keep it as low as possible, which will increase the amount you pay for the work to be done from your pocket.

In most cases, you might want to work with an interior architect. They will help you match the design they come up with to the office’s function, as you discussed before you hired them. The property manager can point you to some architects they trust to do the job for you.

Be Prepared to Put Everything Back as You Found It

If you lease a space and decide to modify it, some building managers will require that everything is put back as you found it when you moved in. If you did some extensive modifications on the space, you might have to demolish everything you built.

If you leave the demolition up to the property manager, they could charge you a fee on top of the demolition costs.

Building a New Office Space

Getting a new office built from the ground up has several advantages over leasing a space that is already built or getting one and then customising it. For example, the building will be included in your business’s assets and can be used to get collateral in case you need a loan. Some of the space in the new building can also be leased, which will earn you extra income.

If you decide to go all the way and get a new office built, there are several things you need to consider. Before we look at these factors, it is important to understand that you are not just building the new office for your employees; you are also building it for your customers. It should, therefore, be convenient and accessible as well as easy to navigate. That said, here are some important factors you need to consider before building your new office space.

Location

The location of the new building is the first thing you should consider before anything else. The location you choose should be convenient to everyone who needs to access the building. If you build the new office in an isolated area, it might not be noticed by some of your potential customers, and so you will be losing out on their business.

Therefore, try to get a piece of property that is close to a main road or close to a town. That way, people will notice your building even if they are just passing by.

The Design

Your office’s design will have a strong effect on the types of customers you attract. Before finishing the office’s design, it is important to consider the types of customers you will be getting as well as what you want the office space to say about your business.

There are many different modern designs you can choose from, with each design having its advantages and disadvantages. When choosing a design, choose one that takes little time to build, and that is flexible. Also, choose a design that causes little disruptions among your employees, and that saves energy in the long run.

The Amount of Space You need

Adequate office space is very important when building a new office space. This ties in with the design you choose, but the bottom line is that you need adequate space for all your employees. Before construction starts, you should allocate enough space for each employee and department, depending on what they will be doing. Remember that it can be difficult to alter your office space once construction is done, so ensure you have everything planned out before you start.

Parking

If you have some space left over and you know your office will receive a lot of visitors, it is always a good idea to have some parking spaces available. A parking space can attract customers, and a lack of one can turn them away, as no one wants to leave their cars on the streets while they visit your office.

Do Not Underestimate the Cost of Construction

One of the most important things to remember is not to underestimate the cost of construction. Because you might not know how much it will cost to have the building built until you have actual bids, it is a good idea to talk to your architect. Although they might not know the exact cost, they can give you a ballpark estimate and advise you on where you can save costs.

If you do not have an architect handy, you can talk to a construction company to get an estimate on one of the most expensive parts of getting a new building – the concrete. The construction company you talk to should have a concrete calculator that will allow you to know how much concrete you will need and how much it will cost. They will likely come to the site to get the dimensions they will enter into their concrete mix calculator to find out how much you will need.

After getting the figure from their concrete calculator, which is usually in cubic meters, you can multiply that with the cost of one cubic meter of concrete to know how much this part of the construction will cost. Don’t forget to ask them if they also have a screed calculator.

The screed is a thin layer of concrete applied to the top of the base floor to form a smooth floor coating. A well-built screed is important if you want your office floor to last long. A company like MixIt can help you do all these calculations as they have an online screed calculator, so you know all the estimates before work begins. They are a top concrete mix supplier that supplies ready mix concrete for all kinds of construction projects such as those of your new office building.

Keep the Time Estimates in Mind

You also need to consider the design you settle on. If you have an intricate design, the build process will take much longer. Keep in mind that any delays in any part of the construction process will push back your date of moving in, so you must take delays into account when estimating the time it will take to move in.

Before getting a new office space, it is important to consider whether you need to lease or construct a whole new building. Leasing might seem like the best option, especially if you need to lease for the short-term. On the other hand, getting a new building built might be expensive initially, but it has some unique advantages.