When starting a company it is important to figure out not just how the team will work together, but where the team will work together. Lots of factors will drive this decision, including what type of company you’re launching, who your customers are, how large your team will be, what your budget is, and where in the world you plan to start your business.

Today there are tools galore which enable a startup to work smarter, faster, and cheaper and these too will color your decisions about your physical space. But good planning, a flexible vision, and smart budgeting can go far in helping you to save money, build and retain a strong team, and create a great working environment.

Here are 10 things for you to consider as you start the hunt for space:

1. What kind of company are you starting?
The first question you’ll need to answer is a simple one: what kind of business are you in? Are you a B-toB? B-to-C? If you are a professional services business with constant client visits, your needs will be very different from the retail business down the street. Consider what your business does as you consider what kind of space (and how much) you’ll need.

2. Who are your customers?
Your physical space (or lack of one) should be reflective of your customers and their needs. If they are consulting clients, they will probably prefer for you to visit them. Alternately, if they are dry-cleaning customers, they’ll probably want to stop by for drop-off and pickup of their garments, right? The location of your physical space should also be chosen with customers in mind; the dry-cleaner is a good example of a neighborhood business that absolutely must be in the neighborhood, while the software company can probably located wherever you care for it to be.

3. What exactly are you selling?
Services? Clothing? Electronics? Digital goods? Do customers ever need to visit your office to receive your offering? Do they take delivery of physical goods? Do they need face-to-face meeting with you or your staff? Alternately, will they communicate with you by phone, by email, or by sending packages via a messenger or delivery service? A software business offering downloads of product should need much less physical space than an accounting or tax preparation firm offering client consultation and this is an important driver in your decision process.

4. How large is your team and how large will it be three years from now?
Have a vision for where you will start and where you are going. It s equally important that you understand the team in year 1 as it is in year 5, so do your homework and plan for a level of growth that makes sense for your business. Once you have gone through that exercise, do the next one: forget everything you just figured out and plan for it to be different. This thought process should be reflected in your lease; try to build in an “out” clause that allows you to cancel the lease after a certain amount of time. for instance the lease we negotiated with our own landlord is a 5 year agreement, and gives us the ability to cancel the lease after 3 years as well as right of refusal on adjacent spaces should our growth be faster than we anticipated. In other words, be agile in your approach and have your office choices reflect that agility.

5. What is your budget? What will it be in 3 years?
Think hard about your budget and consider how this significant expense will impact over the life of the lease. Rent is typically one of the largest line items in a budget, and you will need to carefully consider how much you will commit to paying. A good rule of thumb is that your rent should not exceed 30% of your gross sales, and if you are approaching that number, you should probably consider alternatives. For some companies, buying a space might be an option and if you think that the investment is justified and you have faith in the real-estate market, you might consider this as an option, too.

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