How an engagement runs
Six stages, and the full cost model exists before you see a single building.
Requirement tested
How much space you actually need, challenged rather than accepted. Requirements are routinely overstated and the correction is the single largest saving available.
Cost model built
Total occupancy cost across the full term for each candidate: rent, operating expenses, escalation, restoration, fit-out and double-running months.
Shortlist
Buildings ranked on total cost and fit rather than on asking rent, with the gap between the two explained explicitly.
Negotiation
Terms negotiated with alternatives genuinely live, because leverage disappears the moment a landlord knows you have decided.
Documentation
Lease terms reviewed alongside your attorney, with restoration, assignment and break provisions given the attention the rent usually gets.
Post-completion review
Operating expense charges checked against the lease in the first two years, which is where most overpayments originate.
What this approach costs us
We decline landlord instructions entirely, which is the larger, steadier and better-paid half of commercial property advisory.
We advise staying put. A renegotiated renewal is a fraction of the fee a relocation generates, and it is frequently the right answer.
We recommend less space and shorter terms, both of which reduce a fee calculated on total rent.
We disclose our fee basis before engagement, which invites a conversation most brokers prefer not to have.
Frequently asked
Do you ever act for landlords?
No, on any transaction. Taking building owner instructions would compromise every piece of occupier advice we give, so we forgo that side of the market entirely.
What is dual agency?
One firm representing both the landlord and the tenant in the same transaction. It is legal with disclosure and common. We do not do it under any circumstances.
Who pays your fee?
The basis, amount and payer are disclosed in writing before you engage us. Where a landlord-paid commission is involved we state it and credit arrangements are discussed openly.
Why model the full term?
Because a lease is a multi-year commitment. Comparing buildings on first-year rent ignores escalation, operating expenses and restoration, which frequently reverse the ranking.
What is restoration?
The obligation to return space to a defined condition at the end of a term. For fitted-out medical or lab space it can be substantial, and most occupiers have never estimated it.
Will you tell us to stay?
Frequently. Renewing in place on renegotiated terms is often the right answer and it is a much smaller fee for us.
Can you review our current lease?
Yes, as standalone work. Operating expense audits in particular regularly find charges that do not match the lease.
Do you work with our attorney?
Always. We negotiate commercial terms; your attorney documents them. We do not replace legal advice.