BOMA/SIOR Info Guide

BOMA for Commercial Office Buildings

 

BOMA 1996 (ANSI/BOMA Z65.1-1996)

Known as the "BOMA Z65.1-1996 Standard Method for Measuring Floor Area in Office Buildings", the BOMA 1996 Standard is the most widely used standard method of determining rentable areas in commercial office buildings. The BOMA 1996 Standard measures buildings on a building-wide basis. It introduces the concept of Building Common Area (areas common to all of the tenants in a building). Due to the inclusion of Building Common Area, a building measured according to BOMA 1996 almost always yields higher Rentable Areas than the same building measured according to BOMA 1980.

Key BOMA 1996 Definitions

  • USABLE AREA means the actual occupiable area of a floor or tenant.

  • BASIC RENTABLE AREA means the tenant's USABLE AREA and it's proportionate share of FLOOR COMMON AREA. Note: Basic Rentable Area is conceptually similar to BOMA 1980's Rentable Area.

  • RENTABLE AREA means the tenant's USABLE AREA and it's proportionate share of FLOOR COMMON AREA and BUILDING COMMON AREA.

  • FLOOR COMMON AREA refers to areas common to all the tenants of a floor, such as corridors, elevator lobbies, washrooms, janitor closets, telecommunications and utility areas. Floor Common Area is often found in and around a building core.

  • BUILDING COMMON AREA refers to areas common to all the tenants of a building, such as ground floor lobbies, public corridors, concierge areas and fully enclosed mechanical or equipment rooms. Building Common Area is often found on Ground Floors, Basement Levels and Mechanical Penthouses.

  • MAJOR VERTICAL PENETRATION refers to stairs, elevator shafts, flues, pipe shafts, vertical ducts and the like, and their enclosing walls, which serve more than one floor of a building. Major Vertical Penetrations are excluded from Usable, Basic Rentable and Rentable Areas.

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