Cost Calculator

Instant Offices have devised a simple model that enables you to calculate the true cost of occupying a conventional lease and compare it with the cost of serviced offices. Answer 18 short questions - it should only take 2 minutes, the results are presented immediately in graphical form together with all the calculations and assumptions. Print the results or e-mail them to your colleagues! If you require any assistance please call us on +44 20 7298 0600.

For further information on any questions, please move your mouse over the 'i' icon next to the question. For questions which refer to values in tables, please move your mouse over the 't' icon next to the question.

Size How many people do you need to accommodate? How spacious do you want your office?

Do you require a reception area?

Different Companies have different space requirements. The average space allocated in a serviced office is 75.00 sq. ft / person, however you can choose to work in a compact (say 60.00 sq. ft / person) or more generous (say 120.00 sq. ft / person) if you wish.

Some smaller companies may not require a reception area while others may require a large area. 150.00 sq. ft would be a bare minimum to accommodate a small reception desk with a small waiting area. 200.00 sq. ft would be sufficient for a reception desk together with a seated waiting area. 250.00 Sq. ft allows for a generous area.

Meeting rooms How many meeting rooms do you require? For how many hours would you use a meeting room per month?

Timing For how many months do you require the office?

When do you need to move in (number of weeks)?

The required length of stay is very important as it has a large effect on the period over which startup costs can be amortized. Generally, for large requirements (over 20 people), serviced offices is the most cost effective solution only if the term is fairly short (less than 12 months).

Acquiring a conventional lease will take at least between 2 and 6 months to pinpoint, agree terms, refurbish and fit-out. Serviced offices are the only option should you need to move within 4 weeks, as they are easy to pinpoint through Instant offices, require no capital outlay and provide immediate possession.

Costs Serviced Offices vary in cost. The table shows the cost per workstation per month around the country. Enter a cost per workstation per month that you think will apply to you using the table.

In order to estimate the cost of conventional offices, use the table and enter a cost. All figures are sq. ft per annum.

Enter an estimate for Business Rates per sq. ft per annum.

Enter an estimate for service charges per sq. ft per annum.

	London City	M4 Corridor	Manchester	Edinburgh
Premium	£700.00 - £1200.00	£400.00 - £700.00	£500.00 - £800.00	£500.00 - £750.00
Standard	£400.00 - £800.00	£300.00 - £600.00	£300.00 - £500.00	£300.00 - £500.00
Economy	£200.00 - £400.00	£250.00 - £400.00	£200.00 - £300.00	£200.00 - £300.00
Managed	£200.00 - £500.00	£200.00 - £600.00	£100.00 - £200.00	£100.00 - £200.00

	London City	M4 Corridor	Manchester	Edinburgh
Prime	£50.00 - £75.00	£27.50 - £35.00	£15.00 - £25.00	£20.00 - £30.00
Secondary	£30.00 - £45.00	£15.00 - £25.00	£10.00 - £15.00	£15.00 - £20.00

Occupiers of conventional offices must pay Business Rates (occupiers tax), this varies depending on values set by the Local Authority(£2.50 - £10.00). The Business Rates payable are proportional to the rental value of the building. Business Rates are included in the workstation cost of serviced offices."

Occupiers of conventional offices must pay a service charge to cover general maintenance of the building. The charge covers expenditure on upkeep of the common parts and general maintenance. The cost varies depending on the condition of the building(£1.00 - £10.00). All service charges are included in the workstation cost of serviced offices.

Technology What type of internet connection do you require?

Do you require a switchboard/voicemail system?

How many photocopiers do you require?

The majority of companies do not require greater connectivity than ISDN lines. ISDN offers Internet access at twice the speed of traditional phone lines, are inexpensive to install, but you have to pay standard call rates when you are online.
Companies that use the internet intensively may require either an ADSL line or even a lease line. ADSL provides 'always on' Internet access at up to 20 times the speed of ISDN lines however because your line may be shared with other companies it can be unreliable. ADSL offers a brilliant solution if the majority of your work is downloading rather that uploading from the Internet. ADSL costs circa £150.00 to install with annual charges of circa £120.00 depending on the size of your connection.
Leased Lines are expensive to install (up to £2200.00) and incur annual charges of circa £2000.00. However they provide always on Internet access with a dedicated line.

Telephone systems can be expensive to install (circa £2000.00 for a small network) but do not provide the only cost effective solution. BT can provide a low cost solution call FeatureLine that works well as long as your network is small, and you only require basic call transferring. The cost of FeatureLine is negligible.

Fit outServiced offices are fully fitted, cabled, decorated and furnished, conventional offices are not. In order to calculate the cost of a non-serviced office we need to make assumptions about whether a conventional office needs partitioning, decorating or furnishing. If you do not have an example in mind we suggest that you select yes for partitioning and no for redecoration.

Does the office require partitioning?

Does the office require redecoration?

Do you need to purchase furniture?

The majority of refurbished modern offices is open plan, and may require some partitioning to create standard offices or reception areas. For say 2 small offices, a tea point, reception area, meeting room, data cabling and light modifications, a capital cost of £5.00 / sq. ft is not unusual.

Unless totally refurbished the majority of offices will require some redecoration.

General Will you retain a property agent to assist your acquisition?

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Cost Calculator