What Can Landlords/Owners Do to Re-Purpose Vacant Space?
COVID-19 has hit the economy hard. When the economy is suffering everyone suffers and Landlords/Owners are no exception. There is an unprecedented number of vacant spaces on the market right now and no one quite knows what to do with them. Should you just rent your space to anyone who comes knocking, should you go for shorter leases? Or should you just ride it out till things get better? There are no right answers here but the most logical thing to do seems to be repurposing. But surely that is going to cost you a lot of money, well, not really. If you are smart about how you approach this task, you just might be able to get a desirable tenant without having to break the bank.
How can you re-purpose?
Landlords and leasing agents should consider building out and furnishing vacant spaces that meet new guidelines for risk mitigation of COVID. Many companies will not have the capital to construct spaces and will seek to add those costs to their leases, rather than spend dollars up front.
This is where landlords can step in and add these services at a building or portfolio level. Short-term, the need for on-going physical distancing means that most vacant space is being repurposed to allow occupiers to spread out and keep office density low. Long-term, as many occupiers contract their space, we predict that these vacancies will be transformed into multi-tenant amenity spaces or coworking spaces.
Invest in GOOD DESIGN – which is a balanced approach considering the ECONOMY, ENVIRONMENT AND QUALITY OF LIFE. Before embarking on a design solution, a landlord should consider creating a DESIGN STRATEGY across properties. This includes developing a narrative and character for each property that makes it more desirable than other offerings in the area.
We’ve seen a resurgence in build-out of short-term spec suites with a more socially distanced office arrangement
Companies will need to create space for employees who may be remote but still coming in from time to time. If the office is the place where collaboration is meant to thrive, the space and design must support it.
All in all, repurposing your vacant space is more of an eventuality than a choice. It best to stay ahead of the curve and repurpose your vacant spaces now.
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