The leasing pre-mortem: 7 mistakes to avoid before fitting out an office
A good-looking Cat A+ space doesn’t guarantee a quick let.
You can get the design right, choose all the right finishes and create a convincing set of CGIs. But if the leasing strategy hasn’t been properly challenged before the budget is signed off, you could be left with an expensive empty floor. That’s where a leasing pre-mortem comes in.
Before committing to a landlord led fit-out, it challenges the assumptions behind the scheme. Will it appeal to the right occupiers? Can agents sell it confidently? And, crucially, will it deliver enough value to justify the investment?
Here are seven questions every landlord should be asking before turning a vacant floor into a fitted space.
The pre-mortem checklist
- Is the tenant type specific enough?
“Broad appeal” is rarely a winner. When a fitted suite tries to please every possible occupier, it risks giving none of them a compelling reason to move in. Pick a tenant profile (sector, headcount, working style, etc) and let it shape the brief.
The eventual occupier may be different. That’s fine. The point is to avoid creating a floorplate so neutral, nobody can picture themselves using it. - Does the agent have a story, not just a spec?
A great CGI might secure a viewing, but it won’t necessarily get the lease signed. Agents need more than a specification and a set of good-looking renders. They need a story worth telling. Maybe it’s a space with the best terrace on the street, a flexible workspace for a growing business, or a fully fitted office that’s move-in-ready for a new team.
Whatever the hook, it needs to be clear, credible and easy to repeat. - Does the layout match the likely lease size and decision maker
A sub-5,000 sqft suite and a full-floor HQ pitch are not the same sale. One may be compared by an operations lead, finance director or founder looking at three ready-to-go options. The other may go to a board weighing a five-year commitment, brand risk and the cost of change.
A layout built for the wrong decision-maker means a longer void, whatever the finishes cost. - Are the sustainability claims measurable enough to survive inspection?
Sustainability is increasingly part of the leasing conversation. But ‘sustainably designed’ won’t get you very far when a prospective tenant’s ESG team starts asking questions. What matters is what you can prove. That means clear evidence; from BREEAM, SKA or WELL targets to reused materials and furniture, waste reporting and energy-efficient design decisions.
These are the details occupiers can scrutinise, measure and report against; and they belong at the forefront of your leasing pack. - Are you waiting until the space has finished to start selling it?
Done right, the construction programme can form a key part of your leasing campaign. Progress shots, sample rooms, detail photography and agent updates are a great opportunity to build interest, giving potential tenants something tangible to get excited about.
Going quiet until the handover photos are ready wastes the most useful part of the story: momentum. - Does the upfront spend translate into income logic?
“Beautiful finishes” is not a number a fund manager can process. Every design decision has a cost. The question is what that cost is expected to deliver.
Could a better specification support a higher estimated rental value (ERV)? Could a fully fitted suite reduce incentives? Could getting a tenant in sooner outweigh the additional upfront spend? And what does it all mean for net effective rent?
These are the conversations that get a scheme approved. - What would make this scheme look risky to a QS, PM or fund manager?
Speed is important. So is not making a mess of it. Plenty of fit-out partners can promise speed or design quality. Fewer can prove they’re capable of both when under pressure. Before committing to the scheme, imagine putting the plans in front of a particularly sceptical quantity surveyor, project manager or fund manager. What would they challenge?
An optimistic programme? An unclear scope? Missing contingency? A budget that looks suspiciously light? Sustainability promises without the supporting evidence?
If those questions can’t be answered with confidence internally, an agent will struggle to answer them for a nervous tenant.
Build for the let, not just the look
Nobody sets out to create a fitted floor that sits empty, but great design alone won’t guarantee a fast let.
The strongest schemes bring the commercial thinking, tenant understanding, agent proposition and delivery strategy together before the capex is committed. Tick off these seven questions, and you’ll be in good shape.
Need further support? We can help.
Our leasing pre-mortem is a 45-minute review of your proposed scheme, from tenant profile and agent story to layout, sustainability evidence and programme risk.
We’ll ask the awkward questions before they become expensive ones.
