BuildGrade
Flex Space & Contractor Bay Cost Calculator
Estimate construction costs for industrial flex buildings, contractor bays, and storefront/warehouse combos. Pre-load your numbers into DealForge to model financing and returns.
Location
Bay Configuration
Each bay is one rentable unit with a separate roll-up door.
Common bay sizes:
Total building: 14,400 sqft (8 × 1800 sqft/bay)
Build Specifications
≈ 1,440 sqft of finished office
Expected Income
Optional — enter to see income estimates and pre-populate DealForge.
Market benchmarks (NNN):
Secondary / rural market: $0.45–$0.70/sqft/mo
Mid-size metro: $0.65–$0.95/sqft/mo
Major metro / high-demand area: $0.90–$1.40/sqft/mo
Typical stabilized: 5–10%
Estimated Development Cost
$1.17M–$1.49M
$81–$103/sqft · 14,400 sqft total
Excludes soft costs (architecture, legal, financing fees), typically 10–15% of hard costs.
Does this deal pencil?
Your BuildGrade estimate ($92/sqft) is pre-loaded into DealForge — model financing, NOI, and returns in seconds.
1 income source from your unit mix will be pre-populated.
What Does It Cost to Build Flex Space?
Flex space construction costs are driven by four main variables: finish level, HVAC, office percentage, and market location. A basic contractor bay shell in a mid-cost market runs $44–$62/sqft. A fully finished flex building with HVAC in a coastal market can reach $120–$140/sqft.
| Finish Level | $/SF (shell only) | $/SF (all-in w/ site) |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Shell | $44–$62 | $65–$90 |
| Standard Finish | $58–$80 | $82–$115 |
| Full Finish | $76–$108 | $105–$150 |
All-in includes paving, site utilities, permits. Excludes land, soft costs, and HVAC (modeled separately). Apply regional multiplier for your market.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to build flex space or contractor bays?
Flex space and contractor bay construction typically runs $60–$110 per square foot all-in (building + slab + basic paving), depending on finish level, HVAC, and market. A 10,000 sqft flex building at standard finish costs roughly $700K–$1.1M in most markets, before land.
What is the difference between flex space and a contractor bay?
Contractor bays are a subset of flex space — typically individual drive-in bays (1,000–3,000 sqft each) rented to tradespeople and small contractors. Flex space is a broader category that includes multi-tenant light industrial, showroom/warehouse combos, and professional service offices. Both are usually built as steel-frame structures with roll-up doors.
What bay dimensions are most common for contractor flex?
The most common individual bay dimensions are 24–30 ft wide by 40–60 ft deep (960–1,800 sqft per bay). Deeper bays (60–80 ft) are preferred when tenants need to fit larger vehicles or equipment. A 30×60 bay is a common market standard that attracts a wide range of contractors.
How much office space should I include in a flex building?
Most single-tenant or contractor bay flex buildings are 0–20% office. Multi-tenant flex buildings oriented toward professional services can go higher (20–30%). More office finish adds meaningful cost — the calculator models this as a per-sqft upcharge on the office portion above the warehouse shell rate.
What does flex space rent for?
Flex space rents vary significantly by market. In secondary and rural markets, expect $0.45–$0.70/sqft/month NNN. Mid-size metros run $0.65–$0.95/sqft/month. High-demand major metros (coastal, supply-constrained) can reach $0.90–$1.40/sqft/month. These are NNN rents — tenants pay operating expenses on top.
Do I need HVAC in a flex / contractor bay building?
Depends on the tenant base. Pure contractor and trade bays often have no HVAC in the warehouse area — just a stub for a unit heater. Office areas always need HVAC. Light manufacturing and tech/professional tenants increasingly expect some warehouse conditioning. Full HVAC adds $10–$18/sqft to construction cost but expands your potential tenant pool.