Having an office of which you can call your own is a big milestone for many businesses. Often this is a sign that your enterprise is growing and progressing in the right direction, it’s a small stamp of approval on the work that you’ve carried out so far.
But office space can be harder to select than you might think. Whilst at first glance many offices provide the same basic purposes as one another, there are several variables that can make a difference when it comes to working conditions for employees. Here are a few things which you should consider when selecting your next piece of office real estate.
Room to expand
Whilst it’s important not to overpay for a space which is clearly too big for your current requirements, it’s worth bearing in mind how additional hires might affect your office set up.
Moving offices every few months is not efficient (let alone being very annoying) and although you could probably make extra room by putting items into facilities like those provided by a storage unit company such as Cubic Storage, giving yourself that little extra room to grow in the first place will save a lot of headaches in the longer term.
Natural light
This is something many entrepreneurs forget about and it could be costing them hundreds of hours of productivity across their workforce yearly. Not only are big windows aesthetically pleasing, but the natural light they provide us with has all sorts of health benefits, which can help your workforce function at full capacity or longer.
Studies have shown that employees working in natural light have a higher level of energy than those working under bulbs. And the benefits don’t stop there! You reduce your risk of eye strain working in a room with natural light, you will get your daily allowance of vitamin D and will even get a better night’s sleep!
Parking
First thing in the morning, you want to walk through your office door feeling happy, motivated and ready to work. One thing that can hamper all three of these emotions is the frustrating process of trying to find a parking space. When scoping out a new potential office, it’s worth checking that there is ample space for parking for you, your employees and any clients who may be visiting and that the parking itself is free!
The fees of having to pay to park outside your office everyday mount up and can be an unwanted overhead of hundreds of pounds that any business would want to avoid.
Hidden costs
Before you put pen to paper on any office rental agreement, make sure that you have the full financial picture. Sometimes buildings are not upfront and honest about the fees you may be eligible to pay, and this can come as a nasty shock, especially if finances are particularly strained at the time.
Always check to see what’s included in your lease as you may also have to cover things such as utility bills, service charges, insurance and VAT on your rent.
Interesting related article: “What is Rent?”