In order to expand your business efforts in a competitive environment, you will likely have to make the jump from the home office to a full-blown commercial property at some time. Although this leap may seem dangerous or scary, it is actually something that many business owners do all the time. Simply follow the process below and you should be able to make the transition without a great deal of hassle.
First, you must detail your criteria for a commercial property that will suffice for the needs of your business. It is often best to work out this process by yourself before you walk into any real estate offices; otherwise, real estate agents may try to push you into something that is more advantageous for them rather than you. Once you have laid out your basic criteria, you can walk into a real estate office confident that you know what you are looking for. You will be able to point the real estate agent in the right direction rather than the agent directing you.
Second, you must get the best location for your business. Location is everything when it comes to small companies. You may have built up an audience of foot traffic that will not appreciate having to trek across town to find you. This is a great way to narrow your search so that you will not have to research properties across the entire state, which can be a daunting task.
In order to find a commercial property that fits your criteria, you may want to enlist the services of a reputable agent in your area. Local agents will be much better at finding hidden deals that may not be advertised in the trade periodicals. The hidden gems are often the best purchases.
Next, you will need to inspect each of the properties that you have chosen as your potential new business location. You will need to make sure that the description in the advertisement matches the actual physical description of the property. It is also good to use a little bit of your own money and enlist the services of a reputable third-party inspection agent, especially if there are zoning considerations. There’s nothing worse than taking possession of a property through a lease and then finding out that you cannot use it for the commercial purpose that you bought it for, or even worse, that there is a flaw or structural problem with the building itself.
Once you have found an office building that is suitable for you in the right area, you will need to negotiate a lease agreement. Whether you will be looking for a short-term lease or a long-term lease is a criteria that you should have worked out for yourself in the first step of this process. That makes a huge difference in the amount of money that you will pay per month.
