Space to Learn
Who rents office space on Rubberdesk?
Freelancers, Small Businesses and Start ups are just some of those renting office space on Rubberdesk, but we also have corporates with remote offices who need a permanent office for their staff.
We have Lawyers, Digital Media and Marketing companies, IT and Technology firms, Marketing and Publishing companies, to name but a few, all renting office space through Rubberdesk.
They're a nice bunch, you'd like them.
How does the Rubberdesk Platform work?
- Rubberdesk is a peer to peer marketplace for office space.
- Owners (Hosts) list office space for rent on Rubberdesk themselves for potential Tenants (Guests) to view and enquire.
- Through the Rubberdesk platform, Guests enquire and request viewings of office spaces. This allows Hosts and Guests to meet and ensure the space and people are the right fit.
- When both parties are happy to proceed, there are simple licence agreements to review and sign.
Is there a minimum rental period?
Rental periods are typically around 12 months in duration. This is far shorter than the average 5 year lease in traditional leasing market. Contract lengths can be as short as month to month rolling, however the longer the term the greater the discount and there are some bargains to be had for 6 or 12 months' commitment.
What types of businesses rent their offices out?
There are hundreds of Coworking and Serviced Office Operators around the world who rent out serviced offices. The big international brands such as WeWork, IWG, JustCo and ServCorp may be familiar to you, but there are countless more out there. There is a huge variety of serviced offices out there - and that's where we can help - finding the right office for the right tenant. As well as Serviced office operators, traditional businesses also rent their spare offices out, and these can be from any industry, including:
- Finance companies
- Legal firms
- Architects and builders
- designers and artists
- startups
- Media and publishing
- Agencies
- IT and web development
Really any kind of business can rent out their spare office space.
Renting out office space isn’t what these companies do day to day, which is why we make it super easy for them to become a Host.
How do office charges work?
Serviced offices are quoted on a per month basis. Offices are quoted on month to month or, 3-, 6- and 12-month terms, with the best pricing typically available on longer term commitments.
Typically all inclusive, offices come fully furnished and ready for you to move into and get to work.
Some will include all outgoings and others might charge a small amount for use of meeting rooms or telephones and printing.
The price of a particular office shown based on a standard occupancy, meaning that if fewer people occupy the office the price remains the same.
How much does it cost to list a space?
It is free to list space on Rubberdesk. At Rubberdesk, we only get paid when you do, and our fees are 10% of the total contract value over the first 12 months. All fees are included in the prices shown on the site.
Check out the Membership Agreement for all the details.
How is office space priced?
It’s up to the owner of the space how much they want to charge.
Desks are individually priced and the booking amount is a multiple of the rate and number of desks. Private Offices are priced for the whole office and calculated based on the duration of the booking.
What about insurance?
Hosts are required to insure their space for Public Liability during the time of rental. Guests are required to have business insurance during the time of their rent.
While Rubberdesk maintains its own required insurances – it makes no guarantees or provisions for insurances to any parties using the site or services.
Do you take Bond payments?
Bonds and Security deposits are not managed through Rubberdesk.
Are offices furnished?
Typically yes.
However, spaces can be listed as furnished or unfurnished at the discretion of the owner. We see a mix of requirements from Guests, but generally they look for furnished spaces. We find most Hosts are flexible in this regard if there is a particular need a Guest has.
If you have a special fit out required - talk to us and we'll find the right option for you.
What agreements cover renting through Rubberdesk?
Typically serviced offices operate under short form licence agreements which are much shorter than a traditional lease agreement.
The agreement will cover all inclusions and exclusions that apply, any onboarding and set up costs, and any make good fees.
Where the agreement is for a short term then there will be a clause around renewals and termination notice.
These are all standard terms and we are on hand to help throughout the process, but if you are unsure always consider your own independent legal advice.
Am I allowed to rent my office space on Rubberdesk?
If you’re a lease holder then the chances are that there is a clause around licensing out.
Ask your landlord for permission to licence the space through Rubberdesk, which:
- is a short term licenced use of space;
- is between you as the Host and the Guest;
- does not forego your obligations under your leasehold agreement or add other parties to it.
Landlords are generally very supportive of licensing deals which are much more favourable to them than sub leasing.
What types of businesses rent their offices out?
It's not just Coworking and Serviced Office Operators who rent out office space. Here on Rubberdesk we have all sorts of businesses who rent out office space, including:
- Finance companies
- Legal firms
- Architects and builders
- designers and artists
- startups
- Media and publishing
- Agencies
- IT and web development
Really any kind of business can rent out their spare office space.
Renting out office space isn’t what these companies do day to day, which is why we make it super easy for them to become a Host.
How much does it cost to list an office on Rubberdesk?
It is free to list space on Rubberdesk. Rubberdesk charges 10% of the total contract value over the first 12 months.
Check out the Membership Agreement for all the details
Are Hosts obliged to accept a booking?
No. Hosts may decline or accept a booking.
On Rubberdesk, you're in control.
How does Rubberdesk make money?
Rubberdesk is free to use for those who are looking for office space.
We are paid a referral fee by the owners of office space for the successful introduction of tenants who become paying customers.
Our fees are a standard 10% of total contract value over the first twelve months.
Wifi, Printing... what's included?
It’s up to the Host to decide what’s included.
Typically Hosts provide, (although each can choose what’s included):
- Desk and Chair
- Wifi Internet access
- Access to meeting room on adhoc basis if there is one.
- Electricity and outgoings.
- Fair usage printing
No one likes surprises – that’s why we encourage Hosts to provide an all in price for using the office space – so there are no surprises.
Always check the listing details and ask the Host.
I have spare office space... what next?
You’re in the right place!
Here’s what you do:
- Check with your landlord you are able to rent the space out
- Hit List Your Space for Free
We’ll guide you through the process from there!
It really is super simple. Potential Guests can view your office and enquire, book and pay for it!
What's the best image size to upload?
We're pretty flexible on image sizes you can use on Rubberdesk.
The best aspect ratio to use for images on Rubberdesk is 4:3 Minimum resolution size for images is 600px by 450px
How do I avoid being tied into a lengthy contract?
If Covid has taught us anything it's that plans can change. One feature of the Serviced office market and the contracts used is that they are far shorter than the traditional direct lease agreements of the old days. With a shorter term agreement, your business has the option to change plans and up/downgrade a suite or cancel office rental altogether far more frequently than with a traditional lease.
Want to be super agile? Then work on a month to month agreement until you have more certainty and then upgrade to a 6 or 12 month term and realise some cost savings.
I'm part way through a month, I cancel the rest of the month?
Once each month's rental period has begun, there are no refunds on cancellation of the remaining period of the month.
Cancellation before the move in date
A full refund will be paid where reservations are cancelled over a calendar month before the scheduled move in date, or within 24 hours of the booking being made as long as the rental period has not begun.
If the rental period has not begun, and it's outside the above parameters, a 50% refund will be paid.
Are Hosts obliged to accept my booking?
Nope, a Host can decline booking requests.
After all, it's up to the Host who they share their space with, and as a marketplace, it's a two way street where both parties have to be happy.
How does Rubberdesk make money?
Rubberdesk only makes money when people are happy and when rental deals are done - that's what keeps us on our toes and makes sure we offer an excellent quality of service and build the very best platform out there.
Our 10% fees are included in the prices shown and are covered by the Membership Agreement that all Hosts have entered into.
How much could Rubberdesk save compared to other rentals?
Depending on the space rented the savings are typically around half of what you might pay elsewhere. Rates vary and are set by the Host, but the average desk rate on the Rubberdesk platform is ~$510 per month.
Spaces that grow as you do.
When you rent office space by the desk – you only pay for what you use – so there’s no need to pay for an empty desk until you want to fill it.
There are no long-term leasehold agreements – this is flexible working the way you want it.
What's included in a booking?
It’s up to the Host to decide what’s included, but typically Hosts provide:
- Desk and Chair
- Wifi Internet access
- Access to meeting room on adhoc basis if there is one.
- Electricity and outgoings.
- Fair usage printing
No one likes surprises – that’s why we encourage Hosts to provide an all in price for using the office space – so there are no surprises.
Always check the listing details and ask the Host.
What happens when I hit the Book button?
When you're ready to go ahead and book an office, simply hit the “Book” button on the listing along with:
- Start Date
- Duration
- Number of desks required
- Card payment details
Rubberdesk gets payment authorisation on the booking amount and requests the Host to accept or decline the booking.
When the Host accepts the booking, we debit your account and hold the rent in a Trust Account. Then each month, we'll debit your account for another month until you instruct us to stop, and you no longer wish to rent.
(Should the Host decline the booking, no payment is processed and we'll send you a message.)
Can I view the office space I'm going to rent?
Yes you certainly can – and we encourage it!
Just hit the “Request a Tour” button on the listing and send a message to the owner to arrange a viewing.
We encourage all Guests and Hosts to meet before booking to make sure the space and the people are the right fit.
What's the difference between Coworking Desks and Private Offices?
Coworking Desks are individually rentable and are often in open plan or shared areas. You pay for the number of desks you need to use each month.
Private Offices are rentable wholly and for the sole use of the Guest. You pay for the one office no matter how many people are in it (although that doesn't mean you can play sardines in it!).
What agreements cover rentals?
We've put together the Rubberdesk Short Form Licence Agreement to cover renting of the space on Rubberdesk.
It's a plain speaking, easy to understand licence agreement that we think makes sense and describes what's being licensed out.
It is at the discretion of the Host as to use of the Licence, noting that the Host may well use an amended version of the Licence as no one standard agreement can cover all circumstances.
We strongly encourage Hosts and Guests to consider independent legal advice before using or entering into any legal arrangement (including use of the Licence), as well as considering in full the particular circumstances of their proposed space sharing. Rubberdesk accepts no liability or responsibility as to the use of the Licence (as is or amended) by either a Host or a Guest and use of the Rubberdesk website and all services provided by Rubberdesk are covered by the terms and conditions of the site available.
Use of the Rubberdesk website and all services provided by Rubberdesk are covered by the terms of use of the site and the Membership Agreement.
How do Rubberdesk Agent Referrals for Flex Space Work?
You might simply send us contact details of the enquirer and let us do the rest. If we are not already working the enquiry we'll accept your referral. We'll reach out to them and let them know you referred us, and log to you. We'll qualify the brief, put together a shortlist, arrange inspections, provide detailed proposals, offer contracts and guide them through to signed contracts. We'll update you on the outcome and pay out half our fees earned when we get paid by the operator.
How do Agents Refer Flex Enquiries?
In short... Anyway you can! email: [email protected]
How much can I earn by referring flexible office customers?
Refer a serviced office enquiry and we'll split our fees earned with you straight down the middle 50:50.
What if I don't want to submit the client's details?
Then don't use Rubberdesk. Simple. We work with sensitive client details all the time, but we always know who the customer is. If we don't know who the customer is and are unable to talk to them, then we cannot do our job. and if we cannot do our job then we (and you) cannot get paid.
What if two people submit the same customer referral?
We can only pay out referral fees once, and so will only pay the agent who gives us the referral first. It's in your interest to sign up your customer referrals as quickly as possible to secure your position as referring broker.
When will I get paid?
You will be paid within 30 days of Rubberdesk being paid assuming you are registered as an Agent, your referral is accepted and Rubberdesk is successful in earning a fee for placing the referred customer into office space.
What if Rubberdesk already knows this customer?
We might already know this customer, but be unaware of their need for office space and so you could still be eligible for referral fees. If we are already working an enquiry for them, then we will reject your referral. Else we will accept and honour your referral, with thanks.
How will I know if my referral is accepted?
We'll review and notify you on the status of your referral, and whether it has been accepted or rejected. Once set up as an Agent, you'll find all your referrals along with their status on My Referrals Portal.
We aim to treat all referrals fairly and responsibly, but our decision is final.
What should I tell my customer?
You can tell your customer that you work with Rubberdesk and will pass Rubberdesk the requirements and contact details to help find the best Flex offices.
Are customers charged for Rubberdesk Services?
No. Customers are not charged for Rubberdesk Services. Our services are free and without obligation to the occupier. Rubberdesk is paid a marketing referral fee by operators.
How long are Referrals valid for?
Referrals are valid for 3 months from the time when the referral is accepted by Rubberdesk to when an agreement is signed.
Are agents paid on future deals done with the Customer?
Outside of the Customer's brief supplied by the agent, there are no further referral fees paid. This does not stop you re-engaging your client any time you wish. You'll have all the terms of the Flex deal won and can re-engage them.
Can I see all the Terms and Conditions?
Yes you can. Just email us at [email protected] and start the conversation.
