Guide to Buying & Owning Your Business Premises

When businesses first start off, they usually rent the property they conduct their operations from. Over time, however, that could become more and more inappropriate. You could end up starting to look into buying your business premises. There are plenty of reasons why you should.

But, that doesn’t mean it’s an easy process to go through. It could be a relatively complicated process, especially if it’s your first time buying.

It doesn’t have to be as complicated as you could think. Focusing on the right areas should help with this more than you’d think. Some of these could help more than others, making them more than worth focusing on.

Why Buy Business Premises?

First, it’s worth looking into why you should buy your business premises. It’ll be a significant investment, after all, and you’ll want to justify the cost. This is especially true when you’re already renting a premises and tipping away nicely. 

Buying offers more than a few benefits, with some of the more notable of these being:

1. Letting you save money long-term on rental costs.
2. Giving you more security with your business premises.
3. Putting you in a position to expand and upgrade the property.
4. Making a profit if you ever decide to sell it.
5. Letting you more accurately forecast your costs going forward.
6. Giving you a valuable asset to use long-term.

These can be more than enough to convince you to buy your business premises. This doesn’t just mean finding a property and buying it.

You’re much better off being smart about it. That way, you can make sure you find the perfect property for you. It’ll help you make sure you see each of the benefits above going forward.

Some tips and tricks help with this more than others. Seven of these stand out more than others.

Buying Your Business Premises: 7 Tips to Use

1. Pick the Right Location

One of the main factors to consider when you’re looking for a property to buy is the location. This could be vital for more than a few reasons. You’ll need to be relatively close to your customers, for example. Then there’s making sure it’s within a reasonable distance for your current employees.

It’s worth narrowing down the location as much as you can. While you might need to balance this somewhat with the overall cost, there’s no reason not to spend a bit of time on it. Once  you’ve narrowed down the location, you shouldn’t have a problem finding the right property.

2. Do Your Research

The location is one of the primary factors to pay attention to when you’re looking for a business property. But, there are plenty of others. It’s worth keeping that in mind, and doing your research ahead of time helps you figure everything out as time goes on. You’ll be in a better position to find appropriate properties in time.

Researching the market itself is a key part of this. If there are more and more sales, for example, this could mean prices are getting higher. It could be worth holding off on the purchase until the market cools off and properties become more affordable.

3. Don’t Forget to Budget Properly

Budgeting for the purchase is always vital, and it’s one of the more obvious areas to focus on. You’ll already know that, but it doesn’t mean just knowing how much you have to spend on the property. There could be more costs than you’re aware of, like when you’re closing on the sale.

You’ll also need to consider the cost of maintaining the property once you own it. This could be much higher with some properties compared to others. Factor each of these into your budget to make sure you can actually afford a specific property.

4. Focus on Flexibility

Flexibility is always vital when you’re finding a property to buy for your business. By being flexible, you’re in a better position to find a property that actually suits your company’s needs. It’s worth keeping that in mind as much as possible when you’re looking for a property.

Then there’s the flexibility of the property itself. Some properties could be easier to upgrade and expand than others, giving you the flexibility you need to move forward. While the property mightn’t seem perfect at first, you could be in a better position to upgrade it than you would with other properties.

5. Get the Property Surveyed

There’ll come a point where you’ll find a property you want for your business. This doesn’t mean you should just rush into buying it. You’re much better off taking a smart approach with it. One of the more notable parts of this is having the property surveyed during the process.

This helps you figure out exactly what kind of condition the property is in. You wouldn’t want to end up in a position where you have to deal with surprise issues as soon as you move in. With a property survey, you’ll avoid more than a few headaches later on.

6. Close on the Sale

Once you’ve gotten the property surveyed and are happy with everything, it’ll be time to put an offer in and close on the sale. This can involve a bit of back and forth, but it shouldn’t have to be too difficult of a process. Put the effort into it.

Don’t be afraid to negotiate a little while you’re at it. Depending on the seller, you could end up reducing the asking price more than you would’ve thought. Once you’ve agreed on everything, it’s just a matter of sorting out the legalities and finishing off the sale. It shouldn’t be too difficult.

7. Start Making Upgrades

It’s always worth making a few upgrades once you buy your business premises. Many of the upgrades you could go for might be relatively obvious. They’ll be essential for helping your business conduct its operations. But, there are a few other areas you could want to look into.

Security can be a large part of this, for example. Various tools, like Genetec Synergis door access control systems, can help with this. The more you upgrade your new business premises, the better it’ll work for you going forward. You’ve no reason not to do it.

Tips for Maintaining Your Business Premises

Once you buy your business premises, you’ll need to spend a bit of time and effort maintaining it. This goes beyond just making a few upgrades and leaving it at that. It’ll take ongoing time and effort, as well as a bit of work.

But, that doesn’t have to mean it needs to be complicated. Quite the opposite. It’s just a matter of putting the time and effort into the right areas. These include:

• Taking a Preventative Approach – It’s natural to take a reactive approach to maintenance, like only dealing with issues when they come up. By being proactive, however, you can avoid more than a few of these problems coming up later on. You’ll save yourself a decent bit of hassle, and even some money, as time goes on.
• Putting Effort into Cleaning – Keeping your business premises clean is always recommended. It helps make sure you and your employees have a nice place to work. It also gives a great impression to customers and other third-parties who come to your premises. You’ve no reason not to put a little time and effort into this.
• Not Overlooking Landscaping – It’s natural to focus on the interior of your premises when you’re maintaining it. But, that doesn’t mean it’s the only area you should focus on. If you have an outdoor area, it’s worth putting some time and effort into this, too. It adds to your overall curb appeal and helps to make a great impression on people.
• Keeping it Safe and Compliant – Safety and legal compliance should always be a priority. Some of the upgrades mentioned above are vital for this, but it’s always worth going above-and-beyond with this. It’ll help to make sure you don’t run into any legal issues later on. Your employees and others will also appreciate the safety element.

By putting the time and effort into these, you should make sure your property is well-maintained. It’ll offer more than a few benefits.

They’ll help make sure your business premises are a positive asset for your company. You’ll avoid more than a few problems and issues as time goes on. There’s no reason not to put the time and effort into them going forward.

Summing it Up

Buying a business premises can be appealing for more than a few reasons. That’s especially true when your company is growing. But, this doesn’t mean it’s the easiest process to go through. It could take more time and effort to get through than you might’ve thought.

Thankfully, this doesn’t need to be as complicated as you could think. It’s just a matter of focusing on the right areas, and there shouldn’t be anything to worry about. It could end up being a lot more straightforward than you would’ve thought.