Car parking in an office lease: how it works

Why parking sits outside the rent

A car bay is a separate asset from the office floor. It can be let to a tenant in the building, to a tenant of another building, or to a commuter on a monthly licence, and it is usually worth more let that way than bundled into an office rent. That is why almost every proposal quotes rent and parking as two numbers.

It also means the two can move independently. A landlord holding firm on face rent may still have room on parking, which is one reason it is worth asking for parking separately rather than as part of a single all-in figure.

How many bays you can expect

Buildings allocate parking by a ratio to lettable area. The ratio is fixed by what was built, and in the CBD it is low — planning controls have discouraged parking in central buildings for decades, so a premium tower may have far fewer bays than its tenants would like. Fringe and suburban buildings, built when parking was encouraged, are the opposite.

Where demand exceeds supply, buildings run a waitlist. If parking matters to your business, the number of bays available on day one is worth confirming in writing before you commit, because a promise to add you to a list is not an allocation.

How it is documented, and what it costs you to give up

Parking is normally granted either as a schedule to the lease or as a separate licence. A licence is easier for both sides to end, which cuts both ways: you can hand bays back if you no longer need them, and the landlord can usually reprice them at renewal independently of the rent review.

Unused bays are worth watching. Tenants routinely take the full allocation at signing and then carry bays they never use for the balance of a five-year term. Ask whether you can release bays mid-term, and whether you get first right to take them back.