The impacts of commercial lease structures on landlord and tenant leasing behaviours and experiences

The commercial property market in New Zealand is characterized by two standard but distinct lease environments. In Auckland, the commercial core of the economy, net leases dominate, whereas in Wellington, the political capital, gross leases are dominant. These different lease environments have the potential to strongly influence the nature of landlord and tenant relationships in these markets. Using in-depth interviews with key industry personnel, this study examines the perceptions, behaviours, experiences and key issues confronting landlords and tenants under net and gross leases. The paper examines how different lease structures affect the behavioural and attitudinal characteristics of landlords and tenants including: landlord/tenant perceptions of a lease, the operation and maintenance procedures, landlord-tenant relationship, and ultimately, overall satisfaction

How can BIM technology assist in optimising the life cycle cost of a building?

The complexity of a modern construction project, especially in a fast track environment, necessities the use of Building Information Management (BIM) system to manage such a project to provide the necessary probable cost outcomes of alternative designs ahead of actual construction times. The visualization of such alternative designs through ‘prototyping’ design solutions has the definite advantage of identifying coordination and other construction issues, minimizing delays in construction downtimes and avoiding the cost of reworks. As a communications tool, BIM technology, through modelling techniques such as Ecotect developed by Autodesk’s Revit, can additionally be used to assess impacts of alternative energy saving designs on the life cycle of a building. This paper explores the use of Ecotect in the sustainable design analysis of alternative energy saving designs of a simple residential building. It serves to graphically illustrate the successive steps of the building through its economic life, illustrating the effects of a design decision to the building. It aims at uncovering the feasibility and/or the desirability of using BIM 4D Modelling Technology for life cycle costing in construction projects generally and in residential housing projects in particular