Guides

Long-form editorial

Long-form editorial coverage of global Class A occupier strategy. Each guide is research-led, brand-neutral, and updated quarterly by the Class A Atlas Editorial Desk.

• How to choose a Class A office: a working framework — A repeatable framework for evaluating premium office space — beyond the brochure rent and the marketing video.
• Negotiating rent-free periods: the playbook — Rent-free is the single most negotiable line item in a Class A deal. Here is how to push it without breaking the deal.
• What is a trophy asset? The five-axis test — The word 'trophy' gets thrown around. Here is the working definition we use and the five tests that separate trophy from prime Class A.
• LEED, BREEAM, NABERS: what tenants actually need to know — Green building ratings now drive measurable rent premiums and corporate disclosure obligations. Here is what to demand.
• Decoding a London lease: FRI, dilapidations, break clauses — A practical primer on UK commercial leases for international tenants — the terms that matter and the traps to avoid.
• APAC leasing conventions: a city-by-city primer — What changes when you cross from a Singapore lease to a Tokyo, Hong Kong, or Sydney one — and how to plan for it.
• How to model occupancy cost per seat — The single most useful normalised number in office economics — how to calculate it and how to use it.
• Lease vs flexible: the real tradeoffs — The Atlas's working framework on when traditional leases beat flex providers and vice versa.
• Tenant improvement allowances: the working guide — TI is the largest contractual subsidy in any office lease. Here is how to size, structure, and protect it.
• Subleases and assignments: when, how, and at what cost — The two principal exit routes from a traditional office lease — and what makes them work or fail.
• Fit-out budgeting: a five-tier framework — How to size and stage a workplace fit-out">fit-out budget — from basic Cat B to trophy.
• Cross-border expansion: a Class A search playbook — How to run a coordinated Class A office search across multiple geographies without losing leverage or schedule.
• Class A office snapshot: New York — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in New York — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: London — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in London — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: San Francisco — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in San Francisco — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Tokyo — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Tokyo — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Singapore — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Singapore — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Hong Kong — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Hong Kong — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Paris — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Paris — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Frankfurt — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Frankfurt — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Sydney — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Sydney — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Toronto — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Toronto — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Chicago — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Chicago — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Boston — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Boston — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Los Angeles — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Los Angeles — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Amsterdam — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Amsterdam — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Dubai — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Dubai — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Mumbai — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Mumbai — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Shanghai — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Shanghai — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• Class A office snapshot: Seoul — An operator's brief on Class A leasing in Seoul — submarkets, tenant profile, headline economics, and 12-month outlook.
• AI tenants and the Class A demand picture — How frontier AI labs and platform AI tenants are reshaping Class A demand in gateway markets.
• ESG mandates and tenant filtering — How institutional tenant ESG requirements are reshaping Class A landlord capex and leasing strategy.
• Subleases and the Class A bid stack — How sublease">sublease availability has reshaped the post-2022 Class A bid stack and how to think about it as a tenant.
• The Class A lease renewal playbook — How to approach a Class A renewal — timing, leverage, and the small set of mistakes that cost the most.
• The Class A amenity arms race — What the trophy amenity programme looks like in 2026 — and which features actually drive tenant retention.
• Occupier portfolio strategy in 2026 — How institutional occupiers are sizing, locating, and structuring Class A portfolios for the post-hybrid era.
• Capital markets in Class A: 2026 view — Where institutional capital is allocating across Class A office in 2026 — and what is structurally distressed.
• Engaging a tenant-rep broker: what good looks like — A working framework for selecting and engaging a tenant-rep broker for a Class A search.
• UK rent review playbook — How to approach a UK upward-only rent review without giving the landlord the entire upside.
• Fit-out construction in 2026: budget, schedule, risk — An updated working view of Class A fit-out construction economics, schedules, and risk allocation.