Office Parking Clauses to Look for in Your Next Lease

One of the major sources of tenants’ complaints has to do with parking. Parking clauses are usually not well detailed because they are a part of the common areas. To avoid unnecessary loss in employee productivity and minimize customers’ frustrations, corporate tenants need to know what to consider concerning parking when negotiating terms for their next lease.

As a commercial tenant, it is essential to address the following concerns:

Are there tickets, passes, or parking permits?
Is there a barrier?
Which spaces am I allowed to park in?
Can you move my spaces around?
What rights do I have in respect of parking?
Can I have a disabled person’s space near the door?
Who deals with obstructions, signs, painting, and repairing the car park?
How can I stop people from using my spaces?
Does it have good lighting and CCTV coverage?

Many frustrations that arise due to vague parking clauses can be solved by agreeing with the landlord early on the right terms on which you are permitted to park at the property.

As a corporate tenant, there are several options open to you. It is important to understand all these various options and carefully read through the terms before agreeing.

Here are the four office parking clauses to look for in your next lease:

Demised Parking Spaces

This simply means that you have the exclusive “possession” of the parking spaces that have been demised to you within a premise. However, it is also likely that, because they are exclusively demised to you, you will also be responsible for the repair and maintenance of these parking spaces.

Rights to Park

Instead of demised parking spaces, another alternative is to have the right to park. This comes with two options: general right to park and the exclusive right to park in allocated parking spaces.

General Right to Park

This simply means you have the general right to park in any space(s) within the car parking area on a first-come-first-served basis. The major disadvantage is that the parking lot may become full, leaving no space to park your car. Nevertheless, it has the flexibility of being able to park anywhere within the building premise.

Exclusive Right to Park in Allocated Parking Spaces

This means you have to right to use specific parking spaces for your employees/visitors. In other words, you won’t have to compete with other tenants for parking space during the duration of your office lease agreement.

To minimize parking space problems once the lease has started, you may also wish to consider what other rights you need to help protect the parking arrangements to which you have agreed. For example, you may want to have a provision inserted in your lease that allows you to put up signs or paint markings on the spaces which indicate that the spaces are yours.

Need help finding the perfect office space for your needs? Reach out to the experts at iOptimize Realty® now for assistance! As dedicated tenant representatives, we’ll help you find the best space for your needs and budget.