Southcreek News

Office Building Overland Park

Before you get ready to pick your perfect office building in Overland Park, think about brushing up on your leasing-lingo. Most leases are slightly different, so knowing how to negotiate a lease could help your business save money and get exactly what you are looking for. Here are some suggestions for what to be aware of when figuring out a lease:

Improvements made by the tenant. You might want to make some improvements or changes to your new office space. Be sure to be aware of what your lease says about this. Form leases usually state that a tenant must have the landlord’s consent to make any alterations, so if you are thinking about making any improvements, you might want to make sure that your lease includes a clause that allows you to do so with your landlord’s consent and that the consent will not be delayed or withheld unreasonably. You should also be on the lookout for any clauses that say that a space must be returned in its original condition at the end of the lease.
Common area maintenance and operating costs. Be aware of any operating costs that your landlord is holding you responsible for. If they are separate charges, you might try to negotiate a cap on the amount or a fixed fee.
Option to renew. If you are thinking about renewing, see if you can negotiate to renew your rent at a set predetermined price instead of based on “fair market” price at the time.
Right of first offer and right of first refusal. Right of first offer means that your landlord is obligated to present any space in the building that becomes available to your business before offering it to third parties. Right of first refusal means that your landlord has to offer you first any deals he or she is might make with third parties for a space, giving you the opportunity to preempt the third party and match that deal.

Knowing the ins and outs of a lease could save your business money in the long run and ensure that you are getting exactly what you want from your office space lease in Overland Park.

If you would like inquire about lease negotiations for Overland Park office space through Southcreek, give us a call at 913-685-4100!

Toys for Tots at Southcreek Office Park

The Holiday season is right around the corner, and with it comes the 2012 TOYS FOR TOTS drive! This year the DDI Management Office is inviting Southcreek Community Members to join us, the US Marine Corps Reserve, and the American Legion Riders from Chapter 19 in Gardner, KS to bring toys and smiles to many kids this year.

How to Participate in Southcreek’s 2012 TOYS FOR TOTS Fundraiser:

Donate new, unwrapped $10 TOYS FOR TOTS in the boxes placed in the lobbies of each Southcreek Building. You can also ask about getting a separate box for your company’s suite if you think you will need it. The boxes will be picked up closer to the deadline or as they become full, and the drive will continue well into December.
Join the TOYS FOR TOTS Ride on October 13, 2012. The ride will start at the American Legion Post 19 in Garner, KS, and end at the Tumbleweed Bar and Grill in Garner, KS with several stops along the way. Registration starts at 8:30 and admission is either $10 or a $10 toy. The ride will begin at 11:00.
Contribute personal or company checks to TOYS FOR TOTS by either dropping off your check or mailing it to the DDI Realty Services, Inc. Management Office, 7200 W. 132nd Street, Suite 300, Overland Park, KS 66213.

Don’t miss this opportunity to give some kids a memorable holiday!

If you would like to learn more about Kansas City office space through Southcreek Overland Park, give us a call at 913-685-4100!

DDI Commercial Overland Park on Twitter

Keep updated on your Southcreek Office Park and real estate news by following DDI Commercial’s twitter page! Follow @DDIRealty or search #RealEstate. You can get daily updates on news and discounts through Southcreek Office Park, the latest information on available spaces, and general commercial real estate information.

Dean Development in Kansas City helps both tenants and landlords looking for professional leasing information about Southcreek Office Park, located in Overland Park, Kansas. Our commercial realtors Elaine Sight and Kathy Woodward can give you any information you need about our currently available spaces, tenant options, and pricing. They can also help any customers or associates you might know who are looking for commercial rental space in Overland Park.

Renting Kansas City office space through Southcreek Office Park puts you near all sorts of amenities your business could use—golf courses, hotels, restaurants, banks, and other forms of entertainment and services. You can find out more about what is going on around your office through our twitter updates on community events and even get some discounts at local restaurants or events.

If you would like to learn more about Southcreek Office Park and what the Overland Park community has to offer your business, follow our twitter account (http://twitter.com/DDIRealty/status/202965452245307392), keep checking out our blog, or just give one of our commercial real estate brokers a call at 913-685-4100!

Kansas City Office Space

What is a simple way to avoid some of the frustrations of dealing renting Kansas City office space for the first time? Preparation. Knowing a little bit of the vocabulary used by commercial real estate agents can help you stay on top of the process and more effectively communicate with landlords and real estate agents. Here are a few terms that might help small business owners as they look into commercial office rental:

1.   Gross lease: A type of property lease in which the landlord takes care of all property expenses included in ownership of a space, such as taxes, utilities, and maintenance.
2.   Triple net lease (NNN lease): A type of property lease in which you, the lessee, pays a set rental charge and covers property expenses, including maintenance.
3.   Percentage lease: A type of lease in which costs are determined by the percentage of the volume of sales made at that property.
4.   Usable area: The part of an office or floor of a building that can be occupied by a tenant, measured from permanent wall to permanent wall.
5.   Rentable area: The area within an office that can be used, which includes shared areas of the building and floor such as corridors, lobbies, closets, restrooms, etc.

These and other terms can be helpful to know as you begin your search for office space for rent in Kansas City!

If you would like to talk to one of Southcreek Office Park’s commercial real estate agents about our executive suites in Kansas City, give us a call at 913-685-4100!

RFPs & Negotiating for Kansas City Office Space

Once you have considered your business’s needs and narrowed down potential spaces, it is time to begin negotiations with potential landlords. At this stage, a Request for Proposal (RFP) can be a useful document in making sure those needs are met.

What Is an RFP? For those unfamiliar with commercial real estate jargon, an RFP performs a similar function for a tenant as a standard form lease document does for a landlord. The form lease document represents a “wish list” for the landlord; the RFP serves the same purpose for the tenant. The RFP should include all of the tenant requirements that your business determined when analyzing what you are looking for in a rental space.

Why is it Important? Once you present your RFP, it becomes an important part of lease negotiation procedures and helps keep a focus on unresolved issues between the two parties. Here are a few specific details about the importance of well-prepared RFPs:

Your negotiation leverage as a tenant will be reduced if you do not include items of significance in the RFP including liability limitations, options to extend or terminate, rights of first refusal, escalations and security deposit provisions, etc.
It is in the best interests of both the landlord and the tenant to spend plenty of time on the details of the RFP to minimize misunderstandings that might otherwise occur during later negations, as well as the cost of attorneys needed to resolve those conflicts, etc.
It is important to ensure that an RFP states that it is non-binding and does not impose a legal obligation to continue negotiations to reach an agreement. It might be helpful to state in the RFP that the parties are obligated to negotiate in good faith, but that either party can terminate negotiations if they do not reach a formal agreement within a certain predetermined period of time.

Looking for commercial rental property in Kansas City? Give us a call at 913-685-4100 and find out what Southcreek Office Park (https://www.southcreekofficepark.com/) has to offer potential tenants!

Commercial Real Estate in Kansas City Terms to Know III

Relocating your business to a new rental space might not be something that you do very often in your career, and as a result it can be hard to become fully knowledgeable about this process. To learn or refresh your memory before beginning your search, you might want to familiarize yourself with some basic real estate terms:

Fair Market Value (FMV): The price that a property would most likely sell for in the current market.
Fee Interest: A type of ownership in which an owner has unrestricted power to use and dispose of the property, which can also be inherited or left by will. A common synonym for ownership.
Grantee: The buyer, a person to whom a grant is made.
Grantor: The seller, the person granting property or property rights.
Leasehold Interest: Ownership of realty that is held under a lease; the use of said real estate for a fixed period of time.
Lessee: The business leasing realty from another party.
Lessor: The individual or owner of a building leasing space to another party.
Lien: An encumbrance or claim against property in exchange for money.
NNN Lease: A type of lease agreement in which the tenant is responsible for paying (in addition to rent) its proportionate share of building insurance, real estate taxes, and maintenance of common areas such as landscaping, snow plowing, and management, as well as his or her own utility and janitorial service.
Operating Expenses: The cost to the landlord to operate the property. This includes utilities, real estate taxes, insurance, common area refurbishing, maintenance and repairs, materials and supplies, janitorial and repair services, security fees, property management costs, contractors and employees, cost of signs, outside maintenance, garbage removal, bulb replacement, pest control, etc.

It is important to have a working knowledge of these and other real estate terms as you enter into lease negotiations, so be sure to do your research!

If you want to learn more about commercial office rental in Overland Park through Southcreek Office Park, give us a call at 913-685-4100!

Creating a Market Survey of Commercial Properties Listings in Kansas City

Creating and presenting a market survey can make it easy to compare potential office rental spaces to each other and to your stated objectives as determined by analyzing the needs of your business. There are a few steps that might be helpful in performing and utilizing a market survey:

Know Market Conditions. Market knowledge is one of the most important parts of the survey process. Knowing general market conditions and the subtleties of submarkets can help ensure that a survey is thorough and accurate, which is why many tenants seek the help of a real estate broker for this stage of the process.
Organize and Present Market Survey Information. It can be helpful to create a visual aid to map out the different pieces of market survey information. You might use software programs, Microsoft Excel Templates, or even just Microsoft word to list and compare pieces of important data and informational items such as the class of building, rental rate, submarket, expense stop, building factor, parking ratio, property management, ownership, construction year, amenities, etc. along with data about the available space at each property and a section for any relevant comments.
Note the Location of Each Property on a Map. You can use a map of the metropolitan area to mark the general location of each potential building, as well as make more detailed submarket maps that pinpoint the exact location of each potential building.

A comparison of market survey data for different spaces can help you determine which properties you would like to actually tour.

To find out any information about Southcreek in Overland Park for your market survey, give one of our commercial realtors in Overland Park a call at 913-685-4100!

Southcreek Office Park Discount for Couponing Book

Looking to become a smart shopper? How about starting out by using your Southcreek Office Park discount to buy the book, Couponing for the Beginner: A Guide to Couponing for the Uninitiated? With shows like Extreme Couponing on TV, couponing is catching on as a great way to save some money. But going from occasional coupon user to coupon aficionado is no small task. Couponing for the Beginner has 13 chapters of advice on how to step up your couponing skills:

Chapter 1: Manufacturer and Store Coupons
Chapter 2: Coupon Language
Chapter 3: Coupon Rules and Policies
Chapter 4: Why Coupons Exist
Chapter 5: Where to Get Coupons
Chapter 6: Where to Buy Coupons – Is It Illegal to Buy or Sell Coupons?
Chapter 7: How to Organize Your Coupons
Chapter 8: Where to Use Coupons
Chapter 9: Rewards Programs
Chapter 10: Weekly/Biweekly/Monthly Sales Flyers
Chapter 11: Refunds, Try Me Free, Rebates, Money Back Guarantees
Chapter 12: How to Stack Coupons and Maximize Your Savings
Chapter 13: Your First Trip to Store

You can get this book for only $4.99! Use the coupon code SOUTHCREEK to get $5 off of the original $9.99 price. To buy the book or send an email to info [at] guidetocouponing.com to get a link to where you can order the book.

If you or anyone you know is looking for office suites for rent in Kansas City, check out Southcreek’s many available spaces! Give one of our commercial real estate brokers in Kansas City a call at 913-685-4100 for more information.

Commercial Real Estate in Kansas City Terms to Know II

Brushing up on your real estate terminology knowledge can give you an edge in negotiating commercial real estate leases. Here are some terms to help you fully understand what is going on in your lease negotiations:

Common Area: Any space in a building that is for the common use of all tenants, with the exception of vertical penetrations such as stairwells, elevator shafts, vertical ducting, or flues. These might include lobbies, restrooms, corridors, building break rooms, a building conference room, janitorial closets, storage rooms, and health facilities.
Cost/SF: A common way to price space for a lease. In most lease offerings, rental properties and their corresponding operating expenses are priced using a yearly cost per square footage basis. In order to determine actual annual and monthly rent costs, multiply the “Rentable SF” of the property by the cost/SF that is being quoted, which will come out to be the annual rent. Divide this by 12 to determine monthly rent.
Demising Wall: A common wall separating two tenants, which often requires fire rating standards determined by states and/or local municipalities.
Escalation Clause: The clause in a lease that provides for the increases in rent that a tenant might pay to account for increased landlord expenses such as operating costs, real estate tax, etc.
Estoppel Certificate: A document that the tenant signs articulating the current condition of the lease and any other agreements between the tenant and landlord.

Keep in mind these terms as you enter into negotiations with landlords, and be prepared to do some research on any more terms with which you are unfamiliar.

Give one of our commercial realtors in Kansas City a call at 913-685-4100 if you are interested in learning more about rental space at Southcreek Office Park!