BOMA Measures the RISING COST of Security

Oct 1, 2004 12:00 PM, PARKE CHAPMAN

Expenditures on building security have risen over the past three years, with the spending at government-owned and -leased buildings climbing the most dramatically. A survey conducted by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) Intl. shows that security spending by the government increased from $0.87 per sq. ft. in 2001 to $1.26 per sq. ft. in 2003. In contrast, security spending at private-sector office buildings during the same period rose from $0.49 per sq. ft. to $0.55 per sq. ft.

Most office leases are structured to allow landlords to pass the expense of security on to their tenants, including the cost of security guards' salaries. In many cases, however, tenants are not legally obligated to pick up the tab on other expenditures such as lobby turnstiles, card readers or other technologies.

“The government spent an extraordinary amount of money on building security after Sept. 11,” says Ron Burton, vice president of advocacy and research at BOMA. Burton acknowledges that security standards are lower at most privately owned buildings, which explains why their security costs are comparatively lower. He sees security levels as a reflection of demand. “The real estate industry is driven by tenants, so in places where tenants are not worried about terrorism, they aren't willing to pay for the added security.”

Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), the nation's second-largest commercial property manager with 100 million sq. ft. of domestic office space in its management portfolio, examined all of its managed properties following the Sept. 11 attacks. As a result, the Chicago-based firm boosted its security spending by 37 percent between 2001 and 2002.

Michael Lee, senior vice president at JLL, says the increase in security-related operating expenses included costs for new cameras and additional guards.

Gary Green, CEO at Classic Security, a Manhattan-based security guard firm with more than 500 guards posted at 40 Manhattan office buildings, says his firm charges $15 per hour for highly-trained security guards, but many owners balk at the price. The Class-A office buildings located along major avenues in Manhattan are paying for better protection, “but many of the side street buildings are paying much less,” he says.

“Landlords must understand that a well-trained guard is better than a machine at spotting a suspicious person,” says David Aggleton, president of Manhattan-based security consulting firm Aggleton & Associates. “But there are other things that technology does better than guards.”

FOR THE RECORD…

About the author

Parke Chapman writes for National Real Estate Investor, a sister magazine of Access Control & Security Systems.

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