5 Things to Do Before Renting Commercial Property to a New Tenant

renting-commercial-propertyRenting commercial property when the market for real estate is so competitive means that you need to gain every possible advantage over your competitor. Here are five things to do before you rent commercial property to a new tenant.

1. Improve the building’s exterior

Many potential renters might not be the least bit interested in the outside of the building, but you can’t be certain of that. Take the extra time to ensure that the building exterior is cleaned up because oftentimes small changes to the exterior can make an excellent impression on potential tenants.

  • If there is landscaping then trim up the shrubs and bushes or replace plans as needed, mow the lawn or clear snow, and pick up all debris.
  • Clean up the driveway area, reseal if the parking area is badly stained, repaint parking lines, and take away any obstructions.
  • And clean the exterior, too, including windows. 

2. Take care of repairs, inside and out

Serious tenants will want to forgo the time, and expense, of negotiating repairs into a commercial lease. Therefore, when you do your pre-show walk through, make a list of repairs and get them done before you show.

Simple repairs to drywall, flooring and windows, for example, shows that you are responsible and take your investment, and your future tenant’s time and money, seriously. No tenant wants to be bothered with the small stuff, so don’t waste their time.

3. Go green and show potential

The bottom line of any business transaction is cost effectiveness and your potential tenant will be looking to cut costs. Any way that you can show them savings in the future will help you to close the deal.

The retrofitting only need be underway. If you have installed some low-flush toilets and energy efficient lighting, you can continue the upgrades at a later date.

4. Review building security

You can demonstrate to your potential tenant that you are invested in the security of your building and their business. Few tenants are willing to lease commercial property that isn’t fully secure.

With the latest trends in technology your building should have state of the art security technology because many building break-ins and other security breaches are avoidable. And upgrading your windows or lighting can mean an upgrade to security, too.

5. Clean, clean, clean

Cleaning the premises might be the last point on this list, but by no means is it secondary to your preparations. In fact, it just might be the most important thing you do.

When you show your prospective tenants their future commercial rental space, they want to visualize their venture up and running.  Make the space as attractive as you can, free from mess and grime so that all they envision is their own furniture in your pristine space.

And don’t scrimp on the cleaning either. Hire a professional cleaning service because they know how to make an empty space sparkle. And, the cleaning company will have the right supplies and equipment to get the job down effectively and efficiently.

When you prepare your commercial property for a rental, go down this checklist of five things to do and you will attract only the best tenants. After all, you only have one shot at making a first impression.



  • Share this article

Tags: , , , , , ,
Back to blog