While the owner of a startup company may be reluctant to take on a long-term lease, it might pay to think about what that actually means in practical terms. Here are two things to consider right from the start:

• It could take three to six months, at least, to find a suitable location.
• You may find yourself having to lease way more space than you need, and it could get expensive.

Thankfully, there are alternatives. When I started Compass Commercial, I worked from home until we grew to a staff of four.

You’ll want to check with your municipality, but most larger cities now offer areas where startups can begin small and grow, with the added bonus of having counseling services in an “incubation” environment.

You may also want to consider an executive suite location, which isn’t as expensive as you might think when you add in the services provided, like phone systems, servers and furniture.

Looking for some help in identifying these alternative types of space? Send us an e-mail and we’ll send you a list of the non-traditional places to lease you might want to consider. Check out our Space Calculator app to see exactly how much space you really need!