office space for lease overland park ks

Office Space for Rent in Overland Park: The 5 Things You Should Always Negotiate

If you’re looking for office space for rent in Overland Park, there is bad news and good news: there is no standard commercial lease. This is bad aspect of this means that there is no standard blueprint for you to follow, and thus some room for error. But the good thing is that a savvy negotiator can use this flexibility to their advantage to get an even better deal for their business, and the key to being this kind of negotiator is knowing where you can push for better terms. Negotiation is expected when leasing Kansas City office space for rent, and here are some areas where you absolutely should negotiate for the best possible deal, as suggested in the article “Negotiating a Lease for Commercial Real Estate”:

#1 Lease Length

This is an aspect of the lease that could have huge financial consequences, especially for a new business. There is a balance to keep in mind with lease length: on the one hand, shorter term leases mean more flexibility for businesses in the event that a business outgrows a space or finds itself unable to pay rent. On the other hand, a longer term lease usually comes with more concessions from a landlord, because landlords don’t want to go through the expense and hassle of re-renting a space every few years. Go for longer if you are confident your business will be able to pay rent for the term, but if you are unsure, try to negotiate for a short lease term with option to renew.

#2 Rent

The most basic calculation of rent is multiplying the cost per square foot by the square footage of the space, and then dividing that number by 12 to get the monthly rental rate. However, monthly rent really varies depending on the type of lease your landlord is offering. Here are some different possibilities:

Gross Lease – Costs like utilities, taxes, maintenance, and insurance are all factored into the monthly rental rate. Because of this, the monthly rental rate will be higher, but you as the tenant will pay the same amount each month.
Net lease – Opposite of a gross lease, the tenant is responsible for utilities, taxes, insurance, and repairs in addition to rent. This means that instead of a flat monthly rate, the expenses may vary, which is a good opportunity to potentially save some money, but also more difficult to budget for. There are variations on the net lease (the double and tripe net leases), in which the different elements the tenant pays for (utilities, repairs, etc.) varies.

Make sure you know what kind of lease you are getting into, and whether things like common area maintenance and other fees are included in your monthly rate. You might also think about which lease would be better for your business’s budgeting needs as you are looking at and comparing spaces.

You might be able to negotiate rent depending on the location of the property and the current market conditions, but if nothing else you should address rent increases in your negotiations. Most landlords have an annual rent increase clause in their lease, and depending on the length of your lease, you could ask for a grace period from this or negotiate a cap on the percentage increase each year.

#3 Exit Strategies

For new businesses in particular, this is an essential leasing issue to address. Since it will be hard to get out of a lease outright without incurring serious penalties, your best bet is to ask for subleasing and assignment options.

Subleasing means that you can sublease some or all of your space to another tenant – though you will still be the responsible party for the lease and your choice of tenant will probably be subject to the landlord’s approval. In an assignment situation, you would be able to transfer the terms of the lease entirely to a new tenant. These two options are a good compromise, because they can save your business from dire financial straits, and save the landlord from rushing to find a new tenant.

#4 Permitted Use Clause

This seemingly small detail is also good to keep in mind if you are pushing for a subleasing option. The permitted use clause describes what is allowed in a space, and you want to make these terms as broad as possible to cover any potential expansions in your own business or subleasing tenants.

#5 Build-outs & Improvements

You might have to make some changes to a space to tailor it to your business’s needs – or even simply to make it functional. This is a great place to negotiate who is responsible for what kinds of improvements or renovations – both in terms of paying for the changes and overseeing them. You might be able to get a landlord to give you a build out allowance, especially if you are willing to sign a longer lease. Make sure you also address whether the space needs to be returned to its original condition when you move out, as this will be an expense to your business if that’s the case.

Remember as you enter the commercial leasing process that there is a lot of room for negotiation. Don’t be afraid to push for more favorable terms when you rent office space in Overland Park, but also think about where you can compromise so there is some give and take.

Interested in office space for lease Overland Park, KS? Give one of our commercial real estate brokers a call today at 913-685-4100 to find out more about our available office spaces for rent Overland Park, KS!

Commercial Property in Overland Park, KS: Overlooked Costs and Ways to Save

Before you take the leap of signing a lease for commercial property in Overland Park, KS, the biggest question you should ask yourself is whether your business is financially prepared for this commitment. This means more than just being able to pay monthly rent, because there are so many more costs associated with commercial office space for rent in Overland Park, KS. Here are some hidden costs to be prepared for, as described in the article “Worried About Hidden Office Space Costs?”:

Rent Increases. Most leases for Kansas office space for rent stipulate that the landlord can increase rent annually as their operating expenses rise. These expenses cover things like maintaining the building, labor and materials costs, etc. It is important to avoid this sneaky clause from being a financial nightmare by negotiating so that the landlord can’t raise your rent over a certain percentage each year, or has to base the increases on an objective market index.
Taxes. Some leases require tenants to pay property taxes each year. If this is the case for your lease, double check that the percentage you are paying is in proportion to the amount of space you are renting in the building, and not more.
Pre-existing Condition Clauses. Look carefully for this clause in your lease, which states that your office has to be returned to its original condition when you move out. This means that if you made any improvements or additions to a space – walls, lighting, paint, etc. – you might have to remove or reverse those changes, which could be an expensive undertaking.
Maintenance. Building maintenance costs are passed along to all tenants in some way or another, whether it is built into the rental rate or is an additional monthly fee. Make sure you know what these costs are upfront and build them into your monthly budget.
Improvements. While you might have control over optional improvements, some upgrades you might be required to pay for – like a new sprinkler system or parking lot accommodations that meet the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Electricity. Some landlords conduct yearly electrical surveys to get an exact number for how much electricity your office uses, and then use this to determine how much to charge you for electricity. However, some firms who provide this surveying service base the measurement on what your office would consume if all of your equipment was operating at full capacity. This kind of measurement results in inflated numbers and unexpected costs.

While these are some of the things that could sneak up on your business’s budget, fortunately there are also some ways to save money in the leasing process without cutting corners. Here are some tips to keep in mind, as outlined in the article “8 Ways to Reduce Costs when Finding an Office Space”:

Evaluate lease length options. Lease length is always a tricky aspect of negotiations and can have huge financial implications. The ideal situation is a shorter lease for new businesses, but try to give yourself a lot of options. Do you have an option to renew? What about subleasing or assigning the space? Ask a landlord these questions ahead of time, and factor the answers into your comparisons between spaces.
Create competition in negotiations. A little bit of competition between different landlords is a good way to raise the stakes in your negotiations and potentially get a better deal – whether you are negotiating a lease for the first time or re-negotiating your current lease. Let potential landlords know that you are looking into different options, but be careful not to reveal too many specifics.
Give yourself time to look. You never want your negotiations to be rushed by the impending deadline of an expiring lease. Give yourself plenty of time to search for new spaces – at least six months for small businesses and even more for larger ones.
Plan your space. Don’t wait until after you move in to think about what your ideal space design is. Thinking only in terms of square footage can be counterproductive if a space can’t be used efficiently to meet your business’s needs, so the current layout of a space and the usable square footage should also factor into your comparisons.
Assemble your own teams. Brokers, attorneys, architects and other professionals should all be picked by you so that you know that they are working solely for your business’s interests.
Negotiate for flexibility. A general good rule of thumb is to build in some room for flexibility and unknowns into your lease. Business can go up and down, and there are other extreme factors to think about that are beyond your control, like a natural disaster or the condemnation of the building. Build yourself an exit strategy if you can, and try to minimize the damage to your finances in any given situation.
Remember improvements. If you know you want to do some construction or a build out on a space, that should be factored into your bottom line moving cost as you are comparing spaces. Start seeking out competitive bids from contractors ahead of time so you can really see what you will be getting for a space.
Look at the big picture. Your costs and benefits in a lease encompass much more than your monthly rent. Think about other incentives a landlord offers, such as help with build outs or improvements, breaks on rent, or allowances for relocation, as well as any costs not directly covered by rent – maintenance, taxes, etc.

Renting a new office space is a big financial commitment for a business, especially a small business. Find out in advance what all of your costs are going to be, and be proactive about ways to save a little money without sacrificing what’s important to your business. Seek help where you need it – a good broker or a trusted contractor can be an invaluable ally.

Is your business interested in an office space for lease Overland Park, KS? Give us a call at 913-685-4100 to find out more about our available office spaces for rent Overland Park, KS, and even set up a tour!

Kansas Office Space For Rent: 4 Parking Questions to Answer

While parking might not seem like a top priority in your search for office space for lease Overland Park, KS, it does merit some consideration. This easily forgettable necessity can impact the number of customers who can access your building, so if you are looking for Kansas office space for rent here are a few ways that you can make sure your parking needs are met at your commercial property in Overland Park, KS, as suggested in the article “Transportation Options for Office Spaces”:

#1 Is there enough parking for employees?

One thing that absolutely can’t happen is not having enough space for employees when you move into your new office space. No employee wants to drive around the block a few times looking for that precious spot that just opened – only to realize it’s too small. This is not the way to start strong in a new space, and might mean the loss of valuable employees if you can’t address the problem quickly.

#2 Is there enough parking for customers?

Whether you are the kind of business trying to attract new walk-in traffic or you only need visitor parking so that clients can drop by as needed, you will still need to make sure parking space is always available so that new clients feel welcome and old ones feel that it’s no trouble for them to stop by and speak to you face-to-face. Having a limited parking that is mainly taken up by either employees or other pedestrians going about their shopping could drive these visitors away.

#3 Does the amount of parking space allow for growth?

If you are a new business, you might want to keep growth in mind – both in terms of parking for your employees and for potential clients. It is easier to make arrangements inside a property to expand your actual office space, but parking capacity has a more definite limit, so keep that in mind in your initial lease negotiations. If you do think you might need more parking space, here are a few different options you could consider:

Do any employees bike to work? Some might be interested in this possibility if they live nearby, you could consider offering incentives to encourage employees to bike to work.
Is there a bus or a subway/light rail station nearby? Again, this might be another thing you could incentivize for employees to allow for more parking space for customers.
Are there other nearby parking facilities? Any potential for the development of some in the next few years?

#4 Is the parking lot accessible?

This means both in terms of being easy to find and turn into, and easy for disabled customers or potential customers. Ideally, a client shouldn’t have to deal with a mess of one way streets and U-turns to get into your parking lot, or they just might not bother. You should also ask your landlord if the property meets state requirements for disabled parking and offers easy wheelchair entrance into the building.

Parking does involve a few different points of consideration, so make sure to have a conversation about it with your landlord as you negotiate your lease.

If you are looking for commercial office space for rent Overland Park KS, give one of our commercial real estate agents a call at 931-685-4100 to set up a tour of one of our office spaces for rent overland park, KS.

Commercial Real Estate in Kansas City: 5 Clauses To Watch Out For

Leases for office spaces for rent in Overland Park, KS, can be long and complicated, and often lessees focus on the wrong terms and miss some of the language that really does affect them. Here are a few of these lease provisions to be on the lookout for as you negotiate for a Kansas office space for rent, as outlined in the article “10 Commonly Overlooked Clauses in Commercial Real Estate Transactions”:

#1 Giving Notice

Make sure you carefully look over and note how notices and official communications should be exchanged with your landlord – can you do it by email, or does it have to be by certified mail? Failure to comply with this particular provision could result in consequences ranging from needing to issue another notice to losing certain rights listed in your lease. Here are a few situations in which you might need to issue notice:

Failure to comply with a lease term (i.e. missing a rental payment, not providing insurance, violation of usage terms, etc.)
Exercising an option or right (renewal or extension, renting additional space in the property, relocation, purchasing rights, etc.)
Government citation of property code violations
Hazardous spills or leaks

Make sure you are well aware of how to officially communicate with your landlords in these situations, or you run the risk of losing lease rights and protections.

#2 The Parties and Signatures

It is so important that the names of the parties are correctly identified on the lease, especially where the signature is concerned. An unnamed or incorrectly named party might not be legally bound to uphold the lease, and where the signature is concerned, if an unauthorized party signs or the information is incorrect, the person who signed could be held personally liable for the lease, rather than the business.

#3 Definition of the Premises

Clearly defining the premises is essential to enforcing your rights and protections if any issues occur with your space. For example, if there is a leaky water pipe, the definition of premises will determine whether it is your responsibility or your landlord’s to fix it. Make sure your lease clearly states the exact square footage of your space, as well as defines the common areas you will use, as this will affect the CAM fees you pay.

#4 Indemnification/Hold Harmless

In this part of the lease, the landlord and tenant go through the potential risks and identify who is responsible for remediation in various situations. Possible situations to identify include:

Water damage
Fires
Natural disasters
Cars crashing into the building
Fallen trees
Street construction that affects the property

Sorting out who is responsible for what costs is a complicated question, and is best addressed with the help of legal guidance. The indemnity clause addresses situations in which one party will be financially responsible for dealing with the other party’s losses. This should specifically address cases of negligence. The hold harmless clause is connected to indemnification, because it stipulates that the party who has to deal with the other’s losses may not sue the party responsible for those losses. Needless to say, this could have enormous financial consequences for your business, so work with a lawyer to make sure you are getting a fair deal.

#5 Resolution of Disputes

It’s not uncommon for disputes to arise between parties in a lease, so be prepared with a step-by-step process for resolving any problems – taking issues to court is extremely expensive, and it is in everyone’s best interests to have a speedy and cost-efficient plan in place. Here are a few steps commonly included in dispute resolution provisions:

Negotiations – informal discussion of the issue between the two parties, possibly with legal counsel present.
Mediation – an objective third party hears the dispute and makes suggestions leading both parties towards a solution. Professionals mediators can do this for a fee.
Arbitration – similar to mediation, but in this case the objective third party is authorized to make a formal binding or non-binding decision at the end of the process. Again, professionals can be hired to do this for a fee.
Litigation – a case is filed in a Superior, Federal or Justice court, in which case an individual may represent themselves, but a business would need counsel. This process involves hearings, producing a lot of documents, legal fees, possibly depositions, and overall a serious commitment of time and money. Cases that go to trial might not yield a decision for about two years.

If your lease does not say exactly what steps should be taken, consider proposing just negotiations and mediation. Solving things legally is much more expensive and should be treated as an absolute last resort.

Focusing on only the immediate business-related aspects of your commercial real estate in Kansas City lease could be dangerous to your business in the long run. Seek legal assistance, and make sure that you go over every every aspect of your lease so that there are no surprises down the road.

If your business is interested in office space for lease in Overland Park, KS, give us a call at 913-685-4100 to find out more about our commercial office space for rent in Overland Park, KS.

Rent Office Space in Overland Park: Everything You Need to Know About Lease Length

Lease length for Kansas office space for rent is one of the trickiest but most important issues to address in lease negotiations. Sign a lease that is too long and you could be stuck in a space that you’ve either outgrown or cannot afford, but signing a short lease could mean that you give up a good space sooner than you want. Here are a few different ways lessees approach this problem in their search for office space for rent in Overland Park, as described in the articles “Short Term Leases – How To Find Flexible Leases and When To Go With A Sublease” and “Extending Your Office Lease: Should You Sign a Lease Extension Agreement?”:

Short Term Leases

Truly short term leases can be hard to come by, with the minimum typically being about three years. This could be too long for a lot of start ups, who need just a small space and short term to give themselves flexibility – but even if they do find such a lease, it often comes with strings attached.

It takes some serious effort to find landlords willing to consider a year-long lease or month-by-month rent, and when a small business does find a willing landlord, they trade off this benefit for any leverage they might have had in negotiations. This could result in anything from paying higher rent per square foot to losing tenant improvement allowances.

However, it is possible to find a good short term lease deal, and one of the best ways to expedite this process is to work with a good real estate broker and have an attorney assist your business in lease negotiations.

Subletting or Assigning

One way to sign a longer lease and ease your anxiety is to negotiate for the right to sublease the space if needed. Here are a few things to consider in your sublease provision negotiations:

Do you have the right to sublease some or all of the space?
How soon do you need to notify the landlord about exercising this right, and in what way should they be informed (i.e. certified mail or just an email)?
Will you still be fully responsible for enforcing lease terms if you sublease to another tenant? This is important – if you are still on the hook for the lease even if you are no longer in the space, you need to chose the new tenant wisely.

Another possibility is to ask for the option to assign the lease to a new tenant entirely if you can no longer afford the space. In this event, all of the rights and responsibilities of the lease would be transferred to the new party.

Negotiating for one of these clauses could be mutually beneficial for both you and the landlord if it means you will sign a longer lease. The landlord will be happy because of a longer period of assured rent, and you will have the flexibility of keeping the space or a backdoor if you need it.

Lease Extension Clause

If you do sign a two year lease, for example, but you are worried that this will be too short, take advantage of including an extension clause or option to renew in your lease. This gives you the power to decide at a later date if staying in the space would be best for your business. Here are a few things to consider about exercising this option to extend your lease:

Start the process early. Don’t wait until three months before the end of your lease; you should ideally start thinking about it nine months early.
Determine if you want to stay. Take that time to think about whether it is best for your business to stay or look elsewhere. If you do not foresee major growth, downsizing or a need for a different location anytime soon, then renewing your lease might be your best and cheapest option.
Research the market. Do your homework on what other spaces are available in your area and what rates, privileges and other concessions they might be offering. This will give you more leverage in negotiations with landlords, both because you will have a basis of comparison, and because both you and the landlord know you have other options out there if the new terms are unfavorable.
Decide whether to hire a broker. The lease renewal process is one stage where you could forego a broker because you know the landlord and the space very well by this point. However, hiring a broker could communicate to the landlord that you are serious about negotiating for some big concessions.
Negotiate. You know the space, so you can talk nitty gritty details of what you want improved or what concessions you need. Be aggressive, but friendly, and remember that ultimately it’s cheaper for both of you if you renew the lease, so look for compromises and common ground.

The key to having the option to extend is to negotiate for it in your original lease and to be aware of the right time to exercise it.

Lease length does not have to be a death sentence for start ups trying to rent office space in Overland Park, but navigating this aspect of leasing does require a little more effort and research. Know your options, and don’t let yourself be backed into signing an unfavorable lease.

If your business is interested in commercial office space for rent in Overland Park, KS, give one of our commercial real estate brokers a call at 913-685-4100 for more information about our office space for rent in Overland Park.

Office Space for Lease in Overland Park, KS: 4 Questions for Finding an Environmentally Friendly Space

Looking for an environmentally friendly Kansas Office Space For Rent can be a bit of hassle when trying to juggle all of your business’s priorities for an office space. But going green in your office is not only good for the environment, but good for your bottom line and the general health and well being of your employees. Here are a few questions to ask when trying to find that perfect green office space for rent in Overland Park, as suggested in the article “How to Find a Green Building”:

1. How does the building operate and look?

Is there a recycling program? Can the landlord confirm that they make measurable savings on energy, water and garbage? Do they avoid the use of toxic cleaning products and other office supplies? These are some of the major factors in an environmentally friendly space, but don’t forget about more aesthetic factors, like natural lighting or open spaces with greenery. Try to gather as much information as you can about these initial questions through landlords, current tenants and your own visits to office spaces for rent in Overland Park, KS.

4. Is the building LEED Certified?

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design is the 1994 program created to help support, certify and reward buildings that have certain green qualities. A lot of information is out there about LEED certified buildings, which need to meet a number of qualifications to achieve certification. For a building to become LEED certified it must complete a number of green projects ranging from planting drought-tolerant and native plants to installing rain water collection systems. Buildings are rated through a point system based on these projects. If a building is LEED certified, this is good external confirmation that they are really making an effort to be green.

2. What is their Energy Star rating?

Energy Star is a rating-based program started in 1992 through the EPA. They look at a number of factors, but tend to focus on the conservation of energy, pollution and water. To be included on this Energy Star list a business needs to meet certain criteria for energy consciousness in the building’s management. One way of doing that is making sure that management posts signs that encourage conservation, buys paper products with recycled material, and tries to eliminate water bottle consumption among employees. Beyond just your initial questions and observations, this is an another objective way for you to check if the property owner is truly trying to be environmentally conscious.

3. Can you save energy and costs on transportation?

Can your employees walk or bike to work? How far away is your business from public transport or residential neighborhoods? Having employees drive to work every morning means more emissions and a higher environmental impact – walkability and transportation are key things to think about if your business is truly serious about lowering your footprint. There are several websites that calculate the potential walkability of the business you are looking at; these will include everything from bike lanes and hills to parks and car shares.

If your business is interested in finding a green office space for lease in Overland Park, KS, keep these questions in mind as you do your research and visit potential spaces.

Looking to rent office space Overland Park, give us a call at 913-685-4100 for more information about our available spaces!

6 Tips for Touring An Office Space for Lease in Overland Park, KS

You’ve made a list of what you want, decided on your budget, found a few potential options – and now its time to start touring office spaces for rent in Overland Park, KS, and really getting to the nitty gritty details of what might make one space better than another. Here are a few tips for navigating this stage of finding office space for rent in Overland Park, as suggested in the article “How to Get the Most Out of Office Tours”:

#1 Do Your Homework

Don’t set foot on a property without taking the time to carefully research it first and crafting a list of your questions and concerns. Prioritize your needs and ask questions throughout the tour relevant to whether the space can meet them.

#2 Avoid Over-sharing

While you’re on a tour, try to be as neutral and objective as possible and not give away your interest in a space. Over-enthusiasm can damage the leverage you have during negotiations. Avoid looking too eager for a space by only bringing a few key people with you to the tour, and save your serious conversations about the space until after you leave. Definitely ask questions to clarify any specific concerns, but avoid delivering any general positive verdicts about the space.

#3 Don’t Overdo the Tours

Too many tours can break your focus and cause you to miss out on specific, meaningful details. Try to pace yourself, and don’t do more than four per day. This will help you keep sharp and fresh for taking notes to use in detailed comparisons of spaces.

#4 Pay Attention to the Leasing Agent

While you want to have plenty of questions prepared, try to listen carefully first to the agent’s presentation and save your questions until the end. This way you can both absorb new information and not reveal too much about the research you have already done on the property, which can give you an edge later in negotiations.

#5 Check Out Your Neighbors

Stop by the building’s directory and look through the other tenants you will be sharing the property with. Keep an eye out for competitors or other companies that could become problematic at some point, as well as reliable businesses who might be able to give you some insight into their experience with the landlord.

#6 Come Back When It’s Busy

Try to make time to revisit a space during the busiest times of day to get an idea of what foot and car traffic will be like during peak hours. This can help you assess the efficiency of the property’s crowd management as well as how their security team operates.

Tours are an exciting step in the leasing process, but they are definitely not the first step – take the time to prepare ahead of time and go into each visit with a strategy for how much you will reveal and what you need to ask about a Kansas office space for rent.

If your business is looking to rent office space in Overland Park, give us a call at 193-685-4100 to set up a tour of an office space for lease in Overland Park, KS!

7 Ways to Make Your Kansas City Office Space for Rent More Comfortable

An office space for lease in Overland Park, KS, can be like a second home for a working adult, so it is important to consider what kinds of items you need to keep around your Kansas City office space for rent and what strategies you can use to make sure that you and your employees are comfortable throughout the day. Here are a few things you should consider keeping around your office, as well as a few strategies to increase comfort, as suggested in the articles “8 Items You Need on Your Desk” and “4 Tips for Working Comfortably at Your Desk”:

A Good Chair. When you spend so much time sitting at a desk during the day, it is important to have the right chair to best support your back. Take the time to adjust the chair properly to your height. You want to make sure that your feet can touch the ground, and also think about bringing in a cushion for added back comfort. Reducing back pain can help increase focus and creativity, so it is well worth investing in good office chairs.
Healthy Snacks. Keeping healthy snacks handy, whether brought from home or even supplied by an office kitchen, is a great way to make sure you stay satisfied from nutritious food and your focus remains sharp throughout the day. As an employer, consider ways to encourage healthy eating habits in your office, whether through healthy potluck lunches or office snacks, or even though programs and competitions designed to encourage people to set and meet health goals.
Computer Monitors. Just as with chairs, subtle adjustments to computer monitors can also help increase comfort. Monitors should be directly at eye level to prevent the need to bend the neck and shoulders or to look up, both of which can cause pressure and pain. Use a stand or some thick books to adjust your monitor to an ideal height.
Lighting. The best possible office lighting situation is a lot of natural sunlight coming in through windows, but if this is not an option, softer light is the next best arrangement – for example, overhead lamps or desk lamps, both of which are much better than florescent lighting.
Health Supplies. It’s good to have necessities for various health situations around the office, such as a first aid kit with band-aids, pain killers, throat lozenges, eye drops, and whatever else you might want to have on hand. Other daily health staples include tissues and hand sanitizer to prevent and manage sickness, especially during winter.
Drinking Water. Staying hydrated is so important to general health and energy levels. Having a water bottle on your desk is a great way to constantly remind yourself to be drinking water. Employers could also consider good water bottles as a giveaway item at an office picnic or team-building session to promote good hydration in the office.
Headphones. Having headphones handy can be a great way for office workers to block out office noise and focus on work for a while. Plus, good music is a great pick-me-up to get through a post-lunch slump!

It’s important for both employers and employees to promote and practice good office habits that are geared towards well-being. Healthy, happy employees are much more likely to be productive than ones who are dehydrated, blinded by florescent lights, and hunched over their computers for eight hours a day,

Looking for commercial real estate in Overland Park? Give us a call today at 913-685-4100 to learn more about our available commercial office space for rent in Overland Park, KS, or to set up a tour of one of our office spaces for rent in Overland Park, KS.

Commercial Property in Overland Park, KS: 6 Leasing Mistakes to Avoid

Leasing commercial property in Overland Park, KS, can be a big financial risk – one that is necessary and worthwhile, but one that can have serious and lasting consequences if not done properly. Research and planning are key above all else, but here are a few common leasing mistakes that tenants make to learn from as you start your own search for an office, as detailed in the article “10 Leasing Mistakes Office Tenants Commonly Make”:

#1 Going into leasing without a plan.

If you don’t have a good idea of your company’s space needs, you need to hit the breaks on you leasing process. Before you even begin to look at offices, have some hard numbers for what you need – square footage per employee, projected growth and the need for space that goes along with it, and what kind of space you want. Do you need open space with cubicles? A few conference rooms? An impressive reception area? These are all questions you should have a firm answer to before you look for a new space.

Make sure you also have a solid business plan in place, particularly if you are a new business leasing space for the first time. A lot of landlords will want to see your financial history or at the very least a professional and fact-based business plan as reassurance that you will be a reliable tenant.

#2 Not working with experts.

At all stages of the process of acquiring a new Kansas City office space for rent, it is important to speak expert help. This includes talking to a real estate broker, a legal representative who will represent your interests as a tenant, and an architect to help you plan for any modifications you need to make to a space. It’s tempting to cut corners and do things yourself, but if you are not an expert in any of these fields, you could be causing bigger financial complications for your business down the line.

#3 Not considering lease termination possibilities.

It’s strange to think about upfront as you are just starting out in a space, but you need to consider exit strategies before you ever sign a lease. This is particularly important for new businesses, who cannot afford to take a serious financial hit by paying rent during a rough patch. Terminating a lease is never good, but work with experts and negotiate with your landlord to try to mitigate consequences as much as possible. This requires some give and take, but most landlords are willing to allow for some kinds of relief possibilities, such as subleasing or reassignment, in the event that your business cannot afford the space.

#4 Not factoring in growth and the need to expand.

It was mentioned in the need for a plan before leasing, but it bears repeating: think about what your projected growth is and how much space your business might need in the next few years. It’s a risk to rent more space than you need, but being trapped in an office that is too small and does not allow you to develop can be just as detrimental to your business. Talk to your landlord about the possibility of expanding into other available spaces on the property if it becomes necessary, and try to opt for shorter lease terms with options to renew so you can consider after just a few years whether you have outgrown your space.

#5 Waiting too long for negotiations and a losing good offer.

Don’t leave negotiations until the last minute. These are so important, and you should not allow yourself to become set on a space until you are sure you can negotiate for favorable terms for your business – and the longer you wait, the more leverage the landlord has.

In addition, while you want to give yourself plenty of time to compare spaces and be prepared to walk away from an offer that is less than ideal, don’t wait too long on something you know is a great opportunity. If you find something good, hesitating too long could mean that you lose the opportunity to someone else, and then you are back to square one.

#6 Considering only the finances.

While budget is one of your most important factors, and you have to be prepared to walk away from even a dream space if it is way out of your price range, there are other factors to consider as well, such as the location of the space and the incentives a landlord is willing to offer. Remember that the most affordable office does you no good if your location will not attract new clients or your staff is unwilling to commute, so give yourself a price range to work within and then let yourself consider other merits of various spaces.

If you are starting the process of finding an office space for lease in Overland Park, KS, don’t fall into these common pitfalls!

Interested in commercial office space for rent in Overland Park, KS? Give us a call at 913-685-4100 to learn more about our available offices spaces for rent in Overland Park, KS!

5 Tech Tips for a New Office Spaces For Rent In Overland Park, Kansas

Technology is an important part of any office space for lease in Overland Park, Kansas, especially in this age of ever developing technology in the business world. The tech infrastructure is becoming one of the key features in most office spaces and is very important to most business owners. So while you are looking for an office space for rent in Overland Park, make sure to keep these five technology concerns in mind to ask a landlord about, as outlined in “Moving to a New Office? 7 Questions You Need to Ask About Tech“:

1) Wired Certified

One of the annoying hassles that might come with moving into a new office building is trying to fit it with all the necessary wiring for Internet and telephones. Having a team of IT consultants might help, but even then the information will be secondhand and would be difficult to gauge the accuracy of the of their assessment. What’s the best way to deal with this situation and stay ahead? Probably make sure the building is Wired Certified. This means that the building has been confirmed that it can support an internet-driven business and you don’t have to deal with any inaccurate out-of-date information.

2) Telecom Services

Telecom companies offer a range options for people trying to find good service in an area. Companies offer deals ranging from independent fiber options to leasing telephone lines through larger telecom businesses. It’s good to determine which options are best for your business before you move into a space, so you might consider consulting with a trusted IT person who could guide you in assessing some of your requirements.

3) Existing Tech Issues

Getting to know your office neighbors is beneficial for a lot of reasons – one of which is that they know what kind of technology the building is equipped with and whether or not it functions as it should. Knowing about any problems the other tenants had while moving in and the insider knowledge on recommendations for telecom providers and Internet services that they’ve already done the research for can cut the time you spend figuring it out for yourself. Also its just good business to get to know your future neighbors!

4) Setting Up Equipment

To avoid any problems and delays, you may want to get your business up and running in a new space as soon as possible, which means making sure any technology equipment in the building is situated for your arrival. You can avoid setbacks by making sure that the office has all of the equipment that they say they do – for example, you may come across some places that advertise fiber cable service but in reality doesn’t have the setup. So be prepared for adding extra construction costs if this something that you need.

5) New Provider

If necessary, consider asking your landlord for a new provider as part of the negotiation process. This could be one point of contention for you if the landlord has a specific provider dedicated to your building, but it is still worth looking into and negotiating for a different telecom provider if it is the difference between making or breaking you interest in the space. Sometimes brokers are willing to work with you to meet these requirements.

If you are getting ready to move into a new office space, make sure that you have done your homework to make sure your business has access to any technology that it needs!

So if you are looking to rent office space in Overland Park make sure to check out our Kansas office spaces that are for rent and give one of our brokers a call at 913-685-4100, to set up a tour of our office spaces for lease in Overland Park, Kansas.