Real Estate Brokerage Services for a Business That Has Outgrown Its Office

Three routes when the floor is full mid-lease

• Expand in the building. It fits when your lease holds an expansion option or a right of first offer, or when the landlord has space coming free. You keep the address, nobody moves, and the landlord already knows your company.
• Add a second floor nearby. It fits when a long term remains and the shortfall is modest. A furnished floor can be in use two to four weeks after its lease is signed. The price is a team in two places, with two pantries and two front doors.
• Move and sublet the old space. It fits when the company needs everyone together, or when the team now lives somewhere the old address is awkward to reach. It carries the largest one-time cost, and the old lease still has to be dealt with.

What your existing lease already allows

Three clauses decide which routes are open, and we read them before anyone calls the landlord.

• An expansion option names space you can add at set times and on set terms.
• A right of first offer obliges the landlord to offer you named space before marketing it. It is a first look, not a fixed price.
• The sublet and assignment clause sets whether you need consent, on what standard, and whether the landlord can take the space back when you ask.

Each right is used by written notice inside a window. Lease options explains the mechanics, and your attorney should confirm the dates in your lease.

Leaving the old floor: sublease or assignment

In a sublease you remain the tenant. A subtenant pays you, you keep paying the landlord, and you owe the lease until it ends. As the party marketing the space, you usually pay that commission.

In an assignment the lease passes to another company, which pays the landlord directly. It is the cleaner break, though the original tenant often stays liable if the new one defaults unless the landlord grants a release. That is a point for your attorney. Every way out of a lease compares the costs.

Choosing the neighborhood for the larger floor

Start from where the team lives now, which may not be where it lived when the first lease was signed. Then check which districts have floors of the size you need, because loft neighborhoods run short of large plates sooner than tower districts do. The floors below show what fits about 70 people, and how to choose a neighborhood covers the commute test.

What to compare across the routes besides rent

• One-time costs: buildout beyond the allowance, furniture and cabling, the move, and a second deposit or letter of credit.
• Overlap: the months you pay for two spaces.
• What you still owe on the old lease after each route.
• Time: 10 to 16 weeks is typical where the new space needs a custom buildout.
• Whether the leases would end together, or leave you with two expiry dates to manage.