Make your property assets work harder

With challenging times for everyone, the pressure is on to make your property assets work harder but with a little thought, there are some quick win ideas open to many people that will ultimately make a difference to you financially and ease the burden.

Advertising – Flank walls and open land are often ideal sites for advertising hoardings, signage and banners so if you have a property that fits the bill, this is worth considering. A hoarding can add to the property income and hopefully to capital value but you will need to check with the planners first. As these advertising panels are managed and maintained by the hoarding company, there are no ongoing maintenance issues either.

Walkways – Many shopping and office complexes have sufficient circulation space and could easily accommodate a small mobile sales kiosk or even an ATM or vending machine. If tenants are in agreement, the space can be used wisely and a small sweet seller would increase the morale of family shoppers given the collapse of the biggest high street Pick ‘n’ Mix retailer and an ATM or vending machine would attract footfall to your site too. Alternatively, why not rent the wall space to a budding artist or photographer? Not only is this aesthetically pleasing but you would receive additional income as well as increasing footfall which could generate further sales.

Telecoms – Sought after locations for telecom operators rarely have any intrinsic value so if you have a flat roof on the top of a tall building, the edge of a field on a farm or some landscaped area in an industrial estate, why not turn this into an income generator? The tenant will be expected to sign a full repairing lease taking away any maintenance burden so this could be a win win situation for part of your property that goes unused.

Subletting – Don’t sit there with surplus space gathering dust, but look at some unconventional alternatives to generate a fee. Short term lets; sharing meeting rooms and pooling together services with other tenants are ideas that will see the savings starting to add up quite quickly.
Business rates – Is your assessment correct? Did you check it or accept it as accurate? Have your rates bill checked by a Chartered Surveyor and make sure you are not overpaying. It may be that you have under used sections of your property and vacating them could reduce your rates liability.

Phil Kelly
Partner, Petty