Office furniture leases are actually readily available

The article from John Sacks from 25th March bemoaned the fact that leasing is essentially useless for furniture projects on the basis that no banks are interested in funding such assets. I am delighted to inform John, and more importantly, the broader readership of Office Insight that this assertion couldn’t be further from the truth. The reality is that finance for both pure furniture, and indeed broader fit out projects, is readily available. For some, the significant tax benefits (leasing is 100% tax deductible) are critical, whilst others recognise the importance of retaining capital and making sure cash is deployed effectively, not locked away in furniture, is key.

In fairness to John, his assumptions are not unusual or rare. Indeed misperceptions around leasing in this arena are, sadly, the norm as most business leaders have only their experience with their main high street banks to lean on. In fact, probably the biggest challenge for those of us championing leasing in this arena, is not anything to do with the specific technical considerations of using leasing (the benefits genuinely do speak for themselves) but rather a broader lack of education and understanding that leasing is even available at all for furniture/fit out projects.

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Steve Russell is the sales director of Bluestone Leasing. Bluestone has a specialist interiors division that works with customers including Herman Miller and its dealer network to deliver financing for office projects across the world. www.bluestoneleasing.com