Level founder Joe Averill discusses the importance of due diligence when comparing shortlisted office spaces
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In the last year energy bills have doubled, even trebled at some spaces for those not on fixed rates.
Due diligence when searching for office space is of the utmost importance.
When comparing your shortlisted offices it’s a must to factor this into your figures.
In a recent due diligence piece for a Level client one particular building’s energy rates had increased from 18p per Kw/h to 49p kw/h in the last nine months alone.
Whereas others had a locked in rate of between 21p-25p per kw/h.
To give you some context relative to analysis of Level clients and Manchester firms, for a space of circa 5,000 sq ft (50/60 people with meeting rooms and breakout space) firms are typically utilising circa 80,000kw/h per annum (subject to building and business).
In this instance, the uplift in energy prices equates to an additional £24,652 per year in bills over the tenure of the agreement. That’s £73,956 over three years and some speculate rates are still going to rise in the short term.
For those taking space at other buildings and for those taking larger spaces, this could be significantly higher.
This is important to factor in when comparing buildings as it may make your rent free period less attractive with higher energy bills.
