That's it, never working in an office again

[Deschodt]

It's been made official today... Employer will sublease our building or sell it outright, we are never coming back at work full time. At most we will have a computer lab in another building for stuff that doesn't play well via VPN, and a meeting room for when this is over and we go to work 1 day a week to chat in person or whatever, maybe....

This epidemic is life changing in so many ways.... My leased electric car bought for commuting sits useless, then again I save on parking, tolls, time... I will rarely see my colleagues - this thing is gonna change our society in really fundamental ways ! It's not just restaurants (and good luck to them!) - seems like more things will move to the "from home" space and likely never return even when we're over Covid.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Not having to commute every day, deal with stupid office gossip or get jacked for overpriced “socially obligatory” lunches with staff anymore? Sign me right up! We video conference 1-2x a day and I hope we get a chance to meet up in person periodically going forward but in general the “new way” is awesome and I love it!

I don’t miss dining out in general much either. Once in a great while maybe it’s nice but it’s largely become a rip-off for mediocre food and poor service. I enjoy having my meals at home or doing occasional take out.

[GH85Carrera]

So now your employer does not have to pay to heat or cool your work area, or provide the electricity to run your computer. Do they pay for the internet you need?

No commuting is great. Since I own my own company I just change my hat and yell at the dummy in my chair. The boss's wife often comes in and makes me go do project in the yard right in the middle of the workday.

[Deschodt]

Originally Posted by GH85Carrera

So now your employer does not have to pay to heat or cool your work area, or provide the electricity to run your computer. Do they pay for the internet you need?

No commuting is great. Since I own my own company I just change my hat and yell at the dummy in my chair. The boss's wife often comes in and makes me go do project in the yard right in the middle of the workday.

Correct but I'm saving $300 in parking, $200 in car usage, 2 hours of time spent commuting, and possibly $500/mo of after school care for one of the kids. And lunch out... and I still have a job, which in those times is nothing to sneeze at... I already had gigabit internet for me, and most computers will remain in a lab and I'll remote into them...

it's a lot of take in !

[dad911]

win-win

[Gretch]

And there is an IRS undisputed standard deduction (form 2016 I believe) for maintaining an office at home, that you can demonstrate a need for.

[Ayles]

We have been talking about just this. Small growing company, we were just about to sign a lease on a larger space. Now we might not keep the office we have. We are hiring (even currently) and have likely outgrown our office since we left at the end of feb.

No more commuting and havent paid for childcare in months. Starting to not seem so bad shifting to full time wfh. My wife wont be going back for some time as the scientists she works with still seem quite concerned.

[Otter74]

I sort of dream of this. I have a job that is considered essential (legitimately), and in fact I could do 85% of it sitting at my dining room table like I am now and connecting to our network. The other 15%, when I need to meet with a vendor or inspect a vehicle or whatever, I can just hop on my bike or in my car and go there. But my department has a very hidebound culture that is not big on that, so while about 2/3 of our office is working from home, I continue to travel 15 miles each way every working day to sit in an office in front of a computer all day. I don't complain because I appreciate the way this made my life continue to be very normal-feeling, but I would love to be done with my commute. I don't want to move because I love my neighborhood, and I miss my old 20-minute-bike-ride commute before our office moved. I do think that this will lead to some pretty significant changes as great masses of white-collar workers and their employers realize they don't have to go back and forth to offices every day. While this will be bad for the support system of the existing model, I think this will be good for us overall, particularly for those who live in car-dependent suburbs or have long city commutes.

[pavulon]

Interruptions are everyone's productivity and concentration nemesis. If your's change for the better, you may end up with a lot more time or productivity...if for the worse, well, at least they should be easier to cope with (initially).

[flatbutt]

Originally Posted by Gretch

And there is an IRS undisputed standard deduction (form 2016 I believe) for maintaining an office at home, that you can demonstrate a need for.

I think you need to demonstrate a dedicated space, not just a desk.

[wayner]

In many countries in Europe they have been way ahead of us Canadians and Americans in this area for years now.

[wilnj]

Rumor has it that one of the big banks is considering reducing their real estate footprint by 1,000,000 sf of office space in NYC based on what they’ve seen over the last 8 weeks.

[stealthn]

I am not renewing our lease, didn’t really need it (we are IT), but I liked having it. We are very used to working from anywhere, but can use the money from giving up the lease.

[expatriot98]

There is a big shift coming in the commercial real estate world.

[JavaBrewer]

Originally Posted by expatriot98

There is a big shift coming in the commercial real estate world.

^ agree. Not sure if the shift is away from commercial leasing or a new leasing clientele.

I work in IT and this event has forced folks to adjust, remote work once deemed impossible is now possible. Interesting times.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by Deschodt

Correct but I'm saving $300 in parking, $200 in car usage, 2 hours of time spent commuting, and possibly $500/mo of after school care for one of the kids. And lunch out... and I still have a job, which in those times is nothing to sneeze at... I already had gigabit internet for me, and most computers will remain in a lab and I'll remote into them...

it's a lot of take in !

And I’m guessing that you were already heating and cooling your house plus paying for high-speed internet at home, so no additional expense added for working from home. Sounds like a major win to me.

[ckissick]

A lot of people have been building ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units) in their back yards to rent out for extra income. But they need to be about 600 SF or so, with a kitchen and bathroom. It takes a long time to make your money back.

Or, you could build a detached office of about 250 SF with no kitchen and with a half-bath or no bath for a lot less. I see a lot of those being built instead of ADUs.

[cstreit]

...for now. ..give it time and people will start wishing they had an office to go to for human contact.

[jyl]

My treehouse has AC, a fridge, electricity and lights. I could put a desk in there and work up in the tree. No one else uses it, sadly.

[rattlsnak]

Originally Posted by Gretch

And there is an IRS undisputed standard deduction (form 2016 I believe) for maintaining an office at home, that you can demonstrate a need for.

Originally Posted by flatbutt

I think you need to demonstrate a dedicated space, not just a desk.

That form went away this last tax year. No more doing that. ugh..

"As of tax year 2018, unreimbursed employee business expenses can no longer be claimed for a tax deduction. That means both Form 2106 and 2106-EZ can no longer be used."