Anyone can benefit from a conference room rental, whether it is a solo law practitioner or a large law firm. Your firm’s bottom line can reap the benefits in doing so.
What is a conference room rental?
Conferences room rentals are temporary-basis rooms used by groups, associations, or law firms to conduct events such as a conference, meeting, training event, or seminar. Law firms of all shapes and sizes use conference room rental for a variety of reasons:
- Depositions;
- Real estate and corporate transactional closings;
- Mediations;
- Litigation preparation;
- War room use in close proximity to a particular court; and
- Hosting a networking event.
Reduce your overhead by eliminating leased office space.
Leveraging space at a local executive center rather than leasing an office space directly from the building’s landlord can significantly reduce your overhead over time. If your need for space is on an occasional basis for things such as multiple-party depositions or even a closing, this may be a more suitable option in the long run as opposed to taking on a full-blown commercial lease that will end up costing you more than your actual need.
Law firms are maintaining fewer (and smaller) conference rooms in their own offices, and are leveraging their local executive centers for bigger rooms or additional rooms when they require it. By doing so, the law firm saves thousands of dollars in rent over the lifetime of their lease.
How do firm’s save so much money? Here’s a dollars and cents approach to conference room costs.
An average conference room size is 400 square feet. If your firm pays $35.00 per square foot under its office lease, that conference room has a base cost of $1,517 per month when factoring in the 30% loss rate found in most urban commercial office buildings.
Not only are there costs of the physical space, but there are costs to run it as will. Phone lines, utilities, and even cleaning come into play. This can cost around $300 a month just to maintain the space.
Don’t forget the cost of furniture. An average 10 person conference room table and chairs will run around $5,000.00, plus an extra $1,000 for artwork and a credenza.
The monthly cost for an extra conference room is $1,817.00 per month with additional one-time costs of $6,000.00.
Compare the “real cost” of an extra conference room with the “real cost” of renting a conference room from an executive office center.
When an office provider rents by the day or by the hour, it may be a more viable option than trying to swing the costs of an extra conference room in your existing office. Using an executive center by the day or hour may do the most in keeping your bottom line in mind.
Does your firm use that extra conference room enough to justify the cost?
