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How To Find Your Dream NoMad Office Space In Manhattan

By in Office Space NYC

How To Find Your Dream NoMad Office Space In Manhattan

The Madison Square North Historic District (NoMad) in Manhattan is such a fantastic area to have a business, but not all NoMad office space is created equal. After all, will it matter that you can see the Empire State Building if the server keeps shutting down?

There are 3 keys to having the ideal dream space for your company in NoMad. Those who follow them will find that they can not only have a great start for their business but that they will thrive.

The 3 keys are:

Nomad Office SpaceSuitability to your business – both present and future

The cost of monthly rent – the best deal possible

Lease terms that will permit growth – cost and square footage

Suitability to Your Business

For the sake of this article, we interviewed green energy expert David Katz. Mr. Katz worked in this area of Manhattan and found that it was not only desirable, but the office space was specifically geared toward his employer.

Not only were we in the heart of the business district for our company’s industry, but we were being incubated by a larger, more established firm.

When asked to clarify, he explained that by giving a bigger business a stake in the potential for the startup he had helped bring forward to an IPO, they were not only in the very best place to have a business, but they didn’t pay any rent until the business was profitable.

Can you imagine being in the heart of New York City, he asked, and your only overhead is payroll?

It really seemed like an unbelievable scenario – meaning that we couldn’t fathom it actually happening. So, David Katz referred us to his colleague, Christopher Pascale, the accountant who was the acting controller for Katz’s former employer before becoming the CFO of Portfolios with Purpose, and most recently he released War Poems: A Marine’s Tour 2003-2008, a compelling book about his service in the Marine Corps.

Mr. Pascale verified that David Katz worked in a completely rent-free environment for many months. The company was able to take the thousands of dollars it would have cost to rent the space to bring in the best talent, he went on. It’s not a coincidence that David, who went to Columbia University, was there, nor was it surprising that TJ Anthony [a Chicago Law and West Point graduate] was his mentor.

Getting a rent-free space is ideal, but for those who can’t find such an amazing deal budgeting needs to be accounted for.

Nomad office spaceCost of Monthly Rent

Some company visionaries believe that by getting into the heart of NYC they will be able to have all of their dreams come true. Many learn the hard way that a dream location can turn into a total nightmare.

This is the same reason the late Dr. Thomas Stanley stressed in his book, The Millionaire Next Door. Owning a big home in a gated community or belonging to an exclusive country club will not create sales quite like making sales calls will. In the book he provides a fantastic example on pages 103-105, which have been paraphrased below:

Joel’s son just got his license to sell stock and other investments, and he wanted to help Joel move up faster by helping him buy a house in a gated community. The problem was that Joel’s son only earned $35,000 a year, and his wife was a part-time hairdresser who was now going to retire. When I asked Joel how he thought his son would be able to afford such a high lifestyle he insisted that there would be big deals made on the golf course at the country club, which was mandatory to join in that community at a cost of $25,000 annually. Two years later Joel came to me asking for help. His son’s business wasn’t growing as quickly as he had hoped, and he was still supporting him.

This is not a warning to stay away from the NoMad district. The key is that one must find the right location as well as favorable terms.

Lease Terms That Will Permit Growth

The example noted from Dr. Stanley’s work with millionaires would have been totally different if there were extenuating factors. For example, if Joel’s son used an inheritance to buy the property outright, and the country club gave him a 2-year membership gift, the entire equation would have been different.

In order to get the right office space for your company to thrive, there are several key factors in the lease agreement that need to be met. The cost of operating cannot be overburdened.

Moving into an ideal location with terrible costs will create a situation where your dream NoMad office space turns into a nightmare. Even the best business plan can’t save a company in the development phase from meeting costs it simply doesn’t have the cash to cover.

The Main Takeaways

The dream office you’re looking for can be found if the location is affordable, conducive to growth, and has good lease terms.

There are many promising startups that never truly get off the ground because they end up in default. For those that get rolling, there are many that are disrupted by the need for more space, meaning that they got in a location that didn’t provide for them adequately in the second phase as a result of planning for only the short-term in looking for NoMad office space.

By following this guidance and keeping your budget in mind when looking for a NoMad office space many startups cannot only find themselves in the perfect New York City location for incredible networking and other opportunities but also realize the goals they had set out in the beginning of their journey.

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Spaces Commercial Real Estate helps businesses in NYC find and secure great space. Whether you’re one person running the show or have a cast of characters to do your bidding we’ll help you find the right space and at the right price! Click below for more information.

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Jack Cohen

Jack Cohen has over 22 years of industry experience developing and implementing real estate strategies for clients in Manhattan and throughout the United States. Prior to founding Spaces Commercial Real Estate, Jack was a Managing Director at Colliers International for 3 years and a Director at Cushman & Wakefield for 9 years. Jack’s forward thinking has engineered some of Manhattan’s most unique and difficult deals including the repositioning and leasing of 636 11th Avenue, a 564,000 RSF warehouse to office conversion, which was awarded real estates highest honor- REBNY’s Henry Hart Rice Most Ingenious Deal of the Year Award. Jack is a graduate of Rutgers University School of Business where he majored in Economics and Business Management. He is a member of the Real Estate Board of New York, the executive committee of American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), and the Board of Education of Keter Torah, his childrens’ school. Jack lives on the Jersey Shore with his wife and three children.