You will often see a non-Serviced Office space described using the term CAT A but what does it mean?

• CAT A represents a standard, open plan Landlord finish, decorated, with ceilings, services and lighting installed
• CAT A+ indicates the possible addition of a kitchen, some fit out, a range of furniture and the installation of data and small power wiring (either perimeter around the walls or ideally under the floor)
• CAT B represents a fully fitted and furnished unit with small power wiring and live comms wiring installed - This is also called Plug and Play.

There has been a big movement away from Leasing towards Managed Offices, what are they?

• Typically a CAT A+ or B finish
• All-inclusive pricing, so rent, rates, service charges and all the running costs wrapped into one simple price.
• Unlike leasing, a management company deals with maintenance and billing for you.
• Often available for terms from 12-60months
• Avoid all the complicated legal wranglings, searches and stamp duties (SDLT) than come with leasing
• Limited responsibility to end of contract 'dilapidation' requirements

Dedicated Bandwidth - Non contended IT connections, what's that

• Flex Office or Serviced Office providers will generally offer you a share of their IT line.  This is often over charged and unless you pay £100's of per month, is often reasonably limited, albeit will suffice.
• 1 Gig Line, the basic size of Internet fibre pipe that can be brought into a lease or managed office.  Priced by the megabit, 250mbps is usually around £250pcm, a full 1 Gig line is around £400-500pcm.
• Line of sight, this is essentially a fast IT provision provide via satellite.  The IT connection is beamed over the roof tops as an alternative.  It is generally more expensive but can be installed very quickly (if a wayleave isn't required)
• A 'Failover' line, is a backup upline provided to your building from another providers exchange.  If the primary IT line is accidently cut or disrupted, the other line will immediately take over your supply.

If you're considering a Lease or Managed office solution, there are so many options available.  Leases are coming down in their average term length from 10-20years to just a 7year average term.  A tenant search service will cost you around 8% of the 'headline rent' as finder fee.

Managed office agreements are typically being taken for 3-5years, with breaks from months 24 onwards.  As they are catergorised as flexible solutions, there are no search fees, as these are often sourced via brokers and agents who are paid by the providers.