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Multi-tenant building: What is it and what special features do you need to consider?

Commercial premises are in high demand - after all, every company needs a head office and, if necessary, business premises.

Multi-tenant building: What is it and what special features do you need to consider?

Commercial premises are in high demand – after all, every company needs a company headquarters and, if necessary, operating premises. Multi-tenant buildings are proving to be extremely useful. This article shows what these are, what the advantages are and what special features companies should consider.

 

What is a multi-tenant building?

In the real estate industry, we speak of multi-tenant buildings or multi-tenant properties when the property is rented by the owner to several tenants. As a rule, such properties are geared towards many tenants – many office buildings and shopping centers function according to this principle. Multi tenant properties are mainly found in the commercial sector.

In the case of multi-tenant buildings, there are usually no difficulties in finding a suitable tenant. The premises are very popular and are therefore quickly rented out again when a tenancy ends.

In the case of multi-tenant buildings, a contract term of 5 to 10 years is usually agreed for individual units. This is very common in the business sector. As a rule, tenants pay a fixed lump sum per month, which allows for a high level of cost control.

By the way, the opposite of multi-tenant buildings are single-tenant buildings. In this case, you use the property exclusively without having to share it with another company. All areas, resources, and facilities are yours alone, giving you freedom to design . However, renting a single-tenant office is often accompanied by much longer contract terms.  

However, if you rent a multi tenant office, they usually rent an office space or a floor of a larger building. Your neighbors will most likely be businesses as well. A communal environment is created as common areas are used by all tenants. However, your individual office space will remain private and will only be used by your company.

Many offices in multi-tenant buildings can also be flexibly furnished according to one's own ideas. However, in many properties there is also the possibility of renting already furnished premises.  

Advantages of single-tenant and multi-tenant buildings

Both Single Tenant and Multi Tenant buildings offer a number of advantages.

Single tenant or multi-tenant buildings – which is better suited for companies?

Since both options offer different advantages, it is not possible to make a blanket statement as to whether you should rent space or premises in a single-tenant or multi-tenant building. It therefore depends entirely on your individual preferences and ideas.  

Single Tenant buildings provide an environment tailored to your business. Your needs are covered here. You have full control over the layout and design, so that potential customers can tell which company it is from a distance. You also benefit from a high level of privacy, as you don't have to share resources with other tenants.

However, office space in a single-tenant building often turns out to be a major investment. The costs for rent, maintenance and administration are usually significantly higher than the costs for office space in a multi-tenant building.

This means that multi-tenant buildings are considered a flexible and cost-effective investment. Nevertheless, you don't have to do without a professional public image. On the contrary, you are surrounded by other companies in a multi-tenant building, so there are optimal opportunities to expand your network or collaborate.  

This increases convenience because certain areas were shared and therefore do not have to be maintained by one company. There is a bit of a lack of individuality here, as the design has to be adapted to the needs and preferences of all tenants. However, in your rented unit, you have free rein and can design your premises in such a way that they optimally suit your company.  

Multi-tenant building or business center – what's the difference?

Business centers and multi-tenant office buildings are often lumped together. However, they are not one and the same. A business center also houses several companies. The owner therefore rents to several tenants.

The difference to a multi-tenant building, however, is that the landlord of a business center offers an all-round service. This allows companies to concentrate fully on their core business and do not have to perform any tasks related to maintenance, care and repair of the building. Accordingly, the running costs are somewhat higher than for a multi-tenant building.  

In today's world, however, the boundaries are becoming more and more blurred. Often, rental units are already offered in multi-tenant buildings with certain services.

Are multi tenant buildings secure?

Depending on what your company specializes in, you handle more or less valuable goods and data. In any case, you are dealing with personal data – for example, from your customers or your business partners. Since you are liable to prosecution if you do not adequately protect this data, it is essential to think about the security of your office premises. What about security in rental units of a multi-tenant building?

As a general rule, only you alone have access to the space you have rented. Only separate areas are used jointly – for example, the stairwell, the elevator or, in some cases, a company kitchen. This means that no unauthorized person can gain access to your premises and, for example, steal data.

Building owners usually rely on a locking system for a high level of security. This works in such a way that a key can open the main entrance as well as an office unit. Users therefore have no access to the other units.

It becomes problematic when an employee loses a key or it is stolen. Since the loss of keys poses a high security risk for all office units, the locking system and keys must be replaced once. The building owner incurs high costs.

Electronic locking systems are therefore proving to be much more practical. Such systems no longer use physical keys. Rather, other access media such as transponders, key cards, fingerprints or apps are used. This means that if the key is lost, the corresponding key can simply be blocked. In addition, access authorizations can be easily controlled. Since this is a very practical function, many owners of buildings in which many different people go in and out rely on electronic locking systems. At BlueID,  you get tailor-made solutions that are ideally suited for your multi-tenant building.

Other advantages of a digital locking system are the increased convenience of accessing the building and flexibility. Not every employee of your company in the multi-tenant building has to have the same access authorizations – everything can be configured individually.

Result

Multi-tenant buildings are very popular among businesses. Companies can rent individual units and are located in one building with many other companies. Great opportunities for networking arise, and often even a certain service is offered by the building owner. For a high level of building security, electronic locking systems are worthwhile. This makes access to a multi-tenant building secure, flexible and convenient.

Unser Partner