Top 5 List – To Build New or Buy Existing Commercial Building

To Buy Existing or to Build New…That is the Question:

The decision whether to buy an existing commercial or industrial property or to build from the ground-up is a dilemma many business owners face. There are many factors to consider in making this decision. As the team at APPRO and CERRON assists business owners find creative and unique property solutions, this question inevitably surfaces. As a result, our team has created a side by side comparison chart of considerations to use in the process of making this decision. 

In this article, you will learn about the top 5 considerations when deciding whether to build new or to buy existing commercial or industrial real estate.

Key Considerations:

As your business continues to grow, you may have found yourself transitioning from a small lease space, to a larger lease space. Eventually, you may have outgrown that, too. Now, you have found that in the best interest of your company, you need to purchase real estate for your next move.  The question is, do  you build it from scratch, or do you buy existing? Both have their pros and cons.

Some common considerations include:

1. Time: The amount of time you have to make a move. It is never too early to start planning your next location. Depending on the size and type of property, the time you need to either build or buy, can make a significant impact to your available choices. If you don’t know how much time you need to build, we would suggest reviewing our Project Timeline (which shows both the timing for choosing a new location & the amount of time to design and build).

2. Location: The location you choose may have future ramifications you need to be aware of today. Considerations regarding zoning, access, restrictions, and incentives are items to consider today. Additionally, considering your ability to make modifications in the future may have impacts you hadn’t originally considered today, but will matter down the road. Will you be able to add on if you should continue to grow?

3. Key building components: Consider the existing structure – are you able to make use of the space as is? Does it have ample parking? If not, are you able to add more? 

4. Future considerations: Will you be able to add more space in the future? What does the neighborhood look like now? What are the future plans? What is your 5-7 year vision?

5. Total costs: Are you considering not just your hard construction costs or costs to purchase? Are you also considering the soft costs? (You may download our free resource, “Total Construction Costs” to see a list of hard and soft cost considerations.)

To Buy Existing or to Build New: 

As you can see, there are a lot of things to consider when purchasing or building commercial or industrial real estate properties. The team at APPRO and CERRON have created a complete Buy vs. Build Comparison Chart going into more detail, beyond this Top 5 Considerations list. Download the complete chart today to add more information to your property solutions toolbox! 

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Please contact our team for more questions, or leave us a message below. 

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General Contractor Industrial Buildings are Booming – New Update!

General Contractor Industrial Buildings / Projects are on the Rise

general contractor industrial buildings update by APPRO DevelopmentGeneral contractor industrial buildings are increasing at a significant rate, according to APPRO Development, Inc., a Lakeville, MN general contractor and design-build construction firm.

Per Katie Clark Sieben, MN DEED Commissioner, in a recent article in the Minneapolis StarTribune, “Shovels are turning for Twin Cities Industrial Projects,” “We are seeing hundreds of business expansions happening in the metro and in the greater Minnesota.” Ms. Sieben attended five in one week alone, and recently attended the Menasha Expansion project by APPRO.

The team at APPRO Development has broken ground on multiple industrial expansion and addition projects throughout Minnesota in past year, further attesting to the growth that has been measured and reported by NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, stating, “Nationally, the commercial real estate market grew at the strongest pace in the past year since the economic recovery began in 2011…and the overall outlook for the industry through 2015 is expected to grow between 8 and 15 percent.”

You may review current progress on general contractor industrial buildings by APPRO’s team by clicking on any of the following links:

Our team is available at 952.469.2171, or by completing the following form, if you should have any questions for us:

Cool Roofs for Commercial and Industrial Buildings in Minnesota’s Climate

Roofs for Commercial and Industrial Buildings – An Overview

roofs for commercial and industrial buildings by APPRO Development I Image Source: CRRC (http://coolroofs.org/resources/home-building-owners)

Roofs for commercial and industrial buildings are an important consideration for all building owners, and at APPRO, we are seeing a lot of discussion about, and implementation of cool roofs. The Department of energy has published a guideline for selecting environmentally friendly cool roofs aptly labeled “Guidelines for Selecting Cool Roofs” (click on the title for the link to the document) prepared by a sustainable energy consultant. The 23-page report goes into a broad overview of defining what a cool roof is and what the benefits are.

We’ve installed a variety of cool roof types as of late. From purely white roofs made of thermoplastic polyolefin or TPO to roof materials that have a color to them but still have a high reflectively rating (white isn’t the only cool roof color). The key to these we feel is not only what you see on top but the roof assembly as a whole.

The roofing material we at APPRO recommend is catered to you from careful consideration of what your space is being used for, how it is being built, the project budget, and longevity and warranty of the product being considered. New style materials with the “cool roof” label are here to stay. Those can add benefit to your building. But don’t look past the more traditional materials with a longer history and modifications that also make them cooler. For instance, a traditional asphalt built-up roofing system with a crushed white limestone rock in lieu of the standard gravel.

Contact our team for more ideas and help in choosing a roof for your commercial and/or industrial building(s). We have the proven experience and expertise to make your next project an informed and worry-free process.