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Accommodation and Office Location Choices: Effects on Organizational Siting and Location Theory

Naveed Ahmad1, Petter Næss1
1Norwegian University of Life Sciences

Abstract

Location factors are key to explaining why economic activity clusters where it does and how firms choose where to operate. In essence, these factors are the spatial expression of the production inputs a firm requires. One important factor—accommodation—has often been underestimated, even though it can strongly shape location decisions. The type, quality, and size of premises can influence productivity, so accommodation should be treated as a location-specific cost rather than a neutral background condition. This article investigates how accommodation affects the search for a new office location. The results show that it is a decisive consideration, particularly for organizations intending to rent office space. This challenges a common assumption in location theory: that firms will typically build their own premises. In reality, firms that rent are constrained by what the real estate market offers and must choose among available options rather than design an optimal building for a chosen site. We therefore argue that traditional location theory insufficiently captures office-location decisions made through rental markets and does not properly account for mismatches between supply and demand in office accommodation.

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