Match the building to the business

Site selection

The right building is the one that fits how your operation actually runs — trucks, power, people, and the routes between them.

Clear height & doorsPower & truck courtsLabor & freight access
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EducationSite selection
The spec sheet

Decode the spec sheet

Eight numbers describe almost any industrial building. Know which ones your operation actually depends on.

Clear heightFloor to the lowest overhead obstruction — the number that sets how high you can rack. Modern distribution wants 28–36 feet; plenty of businesses run perfectly at 16–24 and shouldn't pay for more.
Dock-high doorsLoading positions at trailer-bed height (about 48–52 inches) so pallets roll straight into a semi. Non-negotiable for regular full-truckload freight.
Grade-level doorsDrive-in doors at ground level — for vans, box trucks, equipment, and anything on wheels. Most small operations live on grade doors.
Truck courtThe apron in front of the docks. Full-size (53-foot) trailers want roughly 120 feet or more to maneuver. A great building with a shallow court is a daily fight.
PowerThree-phase service, voltage, and amperage at the panel. Machinery, compressors, and charging equipment all draw from this number — and utility upgrades take months, not weeks.
SprinklersWhether the building is sprinklered and to what standard. High-pile storage generally needs high-output (ESFR-type) systems; retrofits are expensive.
Office percentageHow much of the space is built out as office. Industrial office costs real money to add and rarely adds value to remove.
Column spacingThe structural grid inside the box. Wide spacing means flexible racking and staging; tight columns in older buildings eat layout efficiency.
Location

Location math

The building is half the decision. The other half is where it sits relative to the four groups that visit it.

LABOR Your people

Map real drive times from where your workforce lives — for the actual shift start, not a Sunday afternoon. Losing staff to a 20-minute-worse commute is a hidden rent increase.

FREIGHT Your trucks

Distance to interstate ramps, ports, and airports — and the quality of the last mile. Count the turns a 53-foot trailer has to make; one impossible left can disqualify an address.

CUSTOMERS Your service radius

Service businesses live and die on response time. Put your customer map over the building map before you tour anything.

NEIGHBORS Everyone else

Some operations make noise, smells, or 6 a.m. truck traffic. Residential neighbors generate complaints, and complaints generate code enforcement. Pick a street that matches your intensity.

Zoning first

Zoning fit comes before everything

Before falling for a space, confirm the zoning district actually allows your use — by right if possible, since special approvals add months and uncertainty. Our district guides list what each local district permits, and the use search will tell you in seconds which districts welcome your business.

Outside storage is its own question

Parking trucks, staging equipment, or storing materials in the yard is regulated separately from the building. Plenty of districts allow the warehouse but restrict the yard. If your operation needs outdoor storage, make that the first zoning question, not the last.

Hard-won lessons

Common mismatches we see

The most expensive site-selection mistakes aren't bad buildings — they're good buildings that fit someone else's operation.

OFFICE Paying for office you won't fill

A 30%-office flex space rents at a premium. If your team is two people and a printer, that premium buys nothing.

HEIGHT Clear height you'll never rack

Thirty-two-foot ceilings are wasted on floor-stacked inventory. Height is only value if your racking plan uses it.

POWER Underestimating the panel

The machine list grew, the panel didn't. Verify amperage against your real equipment load before signing — upgrades are slow and rarely landlord-funded.

YARD Assuming the yard is usable

Fenced doesn't mean permitted. Confirm outdoor storage rights in writing — in the lease and in the zoning code.

Preparation

Before you tour anything

An hour of preparation makes every tour count double.

Write the must-have list

Doors, clear height, power, yard, office — the specs your operation cannot run without. Separate sheet for nice-to-haves. Don't let a shiny nice-to-have paper over a missing must-have.

Know your true timeline

Add permitting, build-out, and any utility work to the move date. Backing into the calendar tells you which spaces are actually available in time.

Prepare your financials

Landlords ask for financial statements or tax returns before serious negotiation. Having them ready makes you the credible bidder when the right space appears.

Decide your total occupancy budget

Rent plus NNN charges plus utilities plus insurance — a monthly all-in number. It keeps the search honest when quotes arrive in different formats.

Keep reading

Tell us how you operate

Doors, height, power, yard — give us your real requirements and we'll shortlist the buildings that actually fit, zoning included.

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© 2026 RE/MAX Industrial Assets · Educational content — not legal, tax, or investment advice.