Subletting has been a recognised strategy for businesses looking to generate extra income via their workspace for some time—and we anticipate that the far-reaching effects of the COVID-19 situation will make it even more commonplace.
At HubbleHQ, we regularly assist businesses looking to sublet excess space that they have—in the past, we’ve successfully helped brands including HelloFresh, Ministry of Sound, Mixcloud, Songkick and Propercorn do just that. We can manage the whole process for you: from advising on whether it’s possible in the first place, to listing and marketing the desks or offices on our platform for free.
Use our handy calculator to estimate how much your spare desks are worth in a matter of seconds.
So, if your business has (or will have) excess workspace, don’t let it sit there redundant—rent it to others and you could unlock a new revenue stream. Below we’ve listed what you need to know about kick-starting the process.
Right now, subletting could be a particularly beneficial approach for:
- Teams in which a high proportion of employees are working remotely
- Businesses who have paused previous growth plans
- Businesses who have been bought/merged/acquired by another company
- Businesses moving into new workspace who still have time remaining on their old one
- Businesses who acquired extra space prior to the crisis that they now need to offset
In brief, if you have any form of workspace that you are not using, subletting could be worth considering.
It’s worth noting that subletting is subject to landlord or operator approval, but we can guide you on the best steps to take to find out if this is an option for you.
Cash, community, and collaboration:
The primary benefit of subletting is the untapped financial stream for your business. But in doing so, you can also provide a flexible working environment for a small business or startup, as well as nurture a community of like-minded individuals.
Many businesses sharing workspaces will end up working with the teams that they sublet to, sharing knowledge, services and experience. Read our full guide to shared offices and their benefits to find out more.
Which businesses are best positioned to benefit from subletting?
Subletting is best suited to businesses in longer-term contracts, and particularly those with more than six months remaining on their lease.
Within the terms of your contract, there is no right to end a lease or stop paying rent apart from the pre-agreed break clauses. That’s where subletting can help.
If you have less than six months remaining, subletting may not be suitable. Whilst we’ll take the weight off your shoulders when it comes to managing the process, it can still take some time—and in the current climate this could be lengthened further. By the time everything is sorted, there may only be one or two months remaining on your lease and a tenant may prefer to opt for a serviced office instead, to avoid these complications. You also don’t want to expose yourself to any unnecessary legal fees, and with such a short term, the rent would have to reflect the insecurity of the sublet—as the tenant will have no automatic rights of renewal.
If subletting isn’t an option for you but you’d like more advice on your office space strategy, get in touch with our expert advisors by booking a call here.
What does subletting your space via HubbleHQ involve?
At HubbleHQ, we can manage the whole subletting process from start-to-finish. It’s also completely free to list your space via HubbleHQ, and we only take commission if your space is let—making it a no win-no fee scenario, and completely risk-free for such uncertain times.
- Firstly, we’ll establish if you are able to sublet your space by reviewing your contract.
- Then you need to find a tenant. We’ll help you do this by listing you on our platform and advertising your space across our extensive marketing channels—for free.
- You will then need to appeal for superior landlord consent, which usually takes 4-8 weeks (but could be longer during this period). In this time, they’ll check things like the covenant strength of the incoming tenant and ensure they’re happy with the terms you’ve agreed.
- Once this is sorted, it will take another 2-4 weeks of legals to complete on the underlease.
Get in touch
If you’d like to find out more about subletting your space via HubbleHQ, get in touch with our expert chartered surveyors by booking a call below:
