Your mission if you choose to accept it, to find a warehouse ready to move in by November 1st. Not impossible, but also not easy due to a shopping list of specifications required.**
The last three weeks has all been about finding a warehouse which I was asked to help out and find. One would think in this market with so many business closures this task would be a simple one. The problem was the size required and a list of needs which ruled out so many from the start. I can count on one hand how many warehouses meeting their requirements are available and that is only 4 with 2 being seriously expensive. 3 x their current rental price is seriously expensive
The one I found originally I was certain they would grab it but the specs had originally showed the warehouse was fitted with fire sprinklers turned out to be false. This was why they are having to move for insurance purposes with their current land lord refusing to install the fire insurance requirements. The costs are big with quotes coming in at around $300K due to having to have one of those giant water storage tanks installed. The water tank alone is costing around $200K and has to be a separate installation from the main water mains.
The warehouse I was banking on was rejected plus the landlord was not keen on adding a new investment when he originally thought he had sprinklers. This made me have to increase the size of the search area due to this being an older area with no sprinklers available anywhere. Newer builds generally have these fitted these days and this wasn't the case in the past.
This warehouse is also accommodating my new manufacturing business and need to get it sorted quickly due to having orders to fulfil in November. The company who needs the warehouse also needs to be in by November so the pressure has been on.
One of the requirements was for a showroom and having offices run the entire width of the double warehouse this can easily be converted.
Thankfully I found a warehouse on Wednesday this week that hasn't been advertised yet and meets all the requirements. The ones who decide fly in this week due to not only meeting all the requirements it is also under budget. Truthfully this is a steal for what it offers and where it is located and with the urgency of time a no brainer as this will be the best deal out there.
After speaking to so many agents recently it is still mind boggling that warehousing is in such short supply. Smaller units are ten to the dozen with many empty, but the larger warehouses are scarce and those available are going for top dollar outside of the budget.
The company I am helping out are known for crisis management which is not good as normally leaving things to the last minute costs you. This time I think they have got off lightly and luck has gone their way. Why people leave things to the last minute is never good and kind of shows how detached they are from reality. They obviously presumed there would be plenty of warehouses empty and there aren't. Handing in their notice with 3 months notice without even having looked is bizarre and pure madness.