Architecture

By: Amy Hopper, Associate

As with most businesses, teamwork is essential to a project’s success and commercial real estate (CRE) is no exception. CRE brokers, landlords, architects and construction managers, to name a few, all add value to projects by providing their unique perspectives and expertise. In this post I will discuss the steps involved when selecting a building for a commercial interiors tenant project from both the broker and the Architect’s perspective.

BUILDING EVALUATION
One of the first steps a company takes when their lease is expiring is to engage a CRE broker for assistance in evaluating their future real estate options. This will help the tenant determine whether they will renew their lease, renovate in place, or relocate.

Among other things, a broker will research vacant spaces and report back to the tenant on:

parking options
access to public transportation
presence of a fitness center
local food options for employees
average employee commutes

After touring potential spaces, FORM Architects might comment on:

window line i.e. access to natural light and views
column spacing
existing restroom ADA compliance
existing mechanical systems
items for potential reuse i.e. light fixtures, furniture

TEST-FITTING
At this stage, the tenant now has a wealth of information about their potential spaces. What has yet to be determined is how their unique space requirements might fit into each of the vacant buildings and/or their existing space. This process is called “test-fitting” and is a service that FORM Architects provides. Landlords consider this service to be a marketing tool and will often pay FORM to create test fits for the potential tenant.

When comparing potential buildings, brokers are most interested in:

Rentable square footage (RSF) per seat
Demising wall location
Building x-factors, such as amenity spaces, that effect the building core factor i.e. training room and/or conference center

FORM assesses:

departmental adjacencies
brand visibility at the elevator lobby
opportunity for creativity

BUDGETING
In order for the tenant to make a final decision, the cost to build out each potential space is determined.

FORM creates pricing notes to compliment the test fit plans drawn. Then we engage two to three General Contractor’s to put together budgets based on a test fit and pricing notes.

Brokers use the budgets from FORM to negotiate lease terms including a “tenant improvement allowance.”

Generally, these three steps (building evaluation, test fitting and budgeting) lead to the tenant signing a lease. By providing this high level summary of pre-lease activities, I hope to portray how the synergy between broker and Architect can be advantageous to the tenant.

Any questions? Did I use any CRE lingo that you’d like me to explain? Leave a comment and I’ll get back to you!

With the first few months of 2016 under our belt and spring in the air, we have decided to breathe some new life into our firm with the introduction of our very own blog, inFORM. We have assembled a great, internal team of bloggers that represent every facet of our brand. Each contributor delivers a unique perspective and voice that will dial in and provide interesting insight into, who FORM is.

We’ve given free rein to our blog team to share their expertise and discuss any topics that they consider to be interesting or inspiring. We’re passionate about design but are collectively so much more than that and hope to convey this through inFORM.

Blog Team Pic In addition to design and architecture related content, you’ll also get a behind the scenes look into our office culture [something we’re very proud of]. As any architect/designer knows, hours can be long and sleep can be scarce but after we work hard, we play hard.