--- title: "How to choose a Class A office: a working framework" description: "A repeatable framework for evaluating premium office space — beyond the brochure rent and the marketing video." canonical: https://classa.info/guides/how-to-choose-class-a-office pageType: guide lastUpdated: 2026-04-01T00:00:00.000Z license: "CC BY 4.0 with attribution to Class A Atlas (https://classa.info)." --- > Define occupancy economics before scheduling tours — base rent is rarely the most important number. ## TL;DR - Define occupancy economics before scheduling tours — base rent is rarely the most important number. - Use a four-axis framework: base building, location, lease economics, and amenitisation. - Insist on a side-by-side total-cost-of-occupancy spreadsheet across the shortlist — including TI, op-ex, taxes, and concessions. - ESG performance now drives a measurable rent and resale premium — model it explicitly. - Default to a tenant rep who is paid only by the landlord; never engage the landlord's listing agent as your sole adviser. # How to choose a Class A office: a working framework By The [Class A](/glossary/class-a) Atlas Editorial Desk · 2025-09-01T00:00:00.000Z · 14 min read **A repeatable framework for evaluating premium office space — beyond the brochure rent and the marketing video.** ## TL;DR - Define occupancy economics before scheduling tours — base rent is rarely the most important number. - Use a four-axis framework: [base building](/glossary/base-building), location, lease economics, and [amenitisation](/glossary/amenitisation). - Insist on a side-by-side total-cost-of-occupancy spreadsheet across the shortlist — including TI, op-ex, taxes, and concessions. - ESG performance now drives a measurable rent and resale premium — model it explicitly. - Default to a tenant rep who is paid only by the landlord; never engage the landlord's listing agent as your sole adviser. ## Start with occupancy economics, not buildings Most office searches begin with tours. They should begin with a spreadsheet. Build a total-cost-of-occupancy model for at least three scenarios: status quo, a target headcount, and a stretch headcount. Include base rent, operating expenses (or [service charge](/glossary/service-charge) in EMEA), real-estate taxes, [fit-out](/topics/fit-out-capex)">fit-out (amortised), parking, and a reasonable estimate of the broker fee. Only then do candidate buildings have meaning. Compare candidates in **per-seat per-month USD**. That single normalised number cuts through psf vs psm, gross vs net, and currency noise. Our Occupancy Cost Calculator produces that number directly. ## The four-axis framework **Base building.** Class rating, year built or last major reposition, mechanical and HVAC age, structural floor-to-floor heights, slab-to-slab clearance, glazing performance, MEP capacity, and the elevator strategy. Every architect can read these from a drawing set in 20 minutes — make them. **Location.** Commute economics for your actual headcount, not the abstract. Pull a transit isochrone map. Score talent catchment. Factor adjacent amenity (food, fitness, hotels). Walk the block at 8:45am, noon, and 6:30pm. **Lease economics.** Base rent + escalations + free rent + TI + termination optionality + sublease rights + expansion options. The marginal extra year on a term is the cheapest negotiating lever — use it. **Amenitisation.** Tenant amenity floor, conferencing, food, fitness, [end-of-trip facilities](/glossary/end-of-trip), building events. Trophy buildings increasingly compete on these — and they have meaningful retention impact. ## Loss factor matters more than usable rent Class A landlords typically quote rent on a **rentable** square foot basis. Your usable area is smaller — the difference is the loss factor (sometimes called add-on factor or core factor). A 25% loss factor on a 30,000 rentable sqft floor leaves 22,500 usable. On a 20% loss factor it's 24,000. That 1,500 sqft difference is real money — and it's the most under-modelled variable in any first-look comparison. Always normalise to **usable** when comparing buildings. ## Engage a tenant rep, not a transaction broker The standard market structure pays the tenant's broker out of the landlord's commission pool. That means tenant representation is effectively free at the negotiating table — and forgoing it is the most expensive single cost-saving in the search. Hire a broker who represents only tenants, ideally one who has worked the specific submarket for at least five years. Pay attention to recent comparable transactions — those are the negotiating ammunition. ## Insist on the side-by-side At the end of every shortlist round, demand a single spreadsheet from your broker that compares all candidates on identical assumptions: term length, free rent treatment, TI treatment, operating-expense pass-through, and seat density. Most brokers will deliver this; the ones that won't are not the right partners. ## Frequently asked questions ****Should we lease for the headcount we have or the headcount we want?**** : Both — and explicitly. Lease for current headcount with a contractual expansion option (a right of first offer or a hard expansion right) sized to the stretch case. Hard expansion rights are the most valuable and the most expensive — negotiate them early in the LOI. ****How long should the search take?**** : Plan for four to eight months from kickoff to lease execution for a Class A requirement of 5,000-25,000 sqft in a major market. Larger or trophy requirements take longer due to landlord covenant approvals and lender consents. ****What is a reasonable broker fee?**** : Tenant rep brokers in the US are typically paid a commission equal to the present value of one to two months' base rent for each year of the term, paid by the landlord. In Europe, fee structures vary — check before signing the engagement letter. ## Editorial provenance Reviewed by [**Class A Atlas Editorial Desk**](/about/authors/class-a-atlas-editorial-desk) — House byline · global editorial team. Last updated 2026-04-01. See our [methodology](/about/methodology) and [editorial standards](/about/editorial-standards). ### Primary sources for this page - [CBRE Marketview reports](https://www.cbre.com/insights) — CBRE - [JLL Office Insight](https://www.jll.com/en/trends-and-insights) — JLL - [Cushman & Wakefield Marketbeat](https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/insights) — Cushman & Wakefield - [Savills World Research](https://www.savills.com/research_articles/) — Savills - [Colliers Global Office Outlook](https://www.colliers.com/en/research) — Colliers [Full sources index](/about/sources) · [Submit a correction](/about/corrections) ## Related topics - [**Class A Lease Negotiation**](/topics/class-a-lease-negotiation) — How to negotiate a Class A office lease — the playbook from LOI to signed deal. - [**Trophy Asset Selection**](/topics/trophy-asset-selection) — How to identify and evaluate trophy Class A assets for a flagship requirement. - [**Workplace Talent Strategy**](/topics/workplace-talent-strategy) — How office location, building tier, and workplace experience shape talent attraction and retention. --- Citation: Source: Class A Atlas (https://classa.info/guides/how-to-choose-class-a-office), updated 2026-04-01T00:00:00.000Z.