Conventional wisdom says the three most important factors in real estate are “location, location, location.” While location still matters in choosing a commercial property, fiber connectivity may soon make its way onto that famous list due to its impact on tenant demand and valuation.

Did you know some buildings are now rated based on their WiredScore? That’s the digital connectivity rating system for real estate used by leading landlords in 12 countries, and the WiredScore score can impact the value of the property. In fact, fiber connectivity has been found to increase the value of physical real estate by a few percentage points.

Connectivity to be Competitive

The importance of fiber connectivity has increased substantially as high-speed internet went from being a “nice to have” item to being “I can’t live without it” essential for prospective residents and commercial tenants. Most commercial properties now need to offer fiber connectivity to be competitive in the marketplace. After all, people are working with many times more data on more devices than they did several years ago, so bandwidth is a major concern. Tenants now expect fast and reliable broadband as much as they expect adequate power, heating, air conditioning, and parking. For commercial properties, the availability of fiber connectivity can even make or break a rental agreement. This isn’t surprising, since fiber connectivity enables employees and work-from-home residents to confidently perform critical work and stay connected. Businesses can operate much more efficiently in buildings with access to next-generation GIG internet — with 99.9% reliability.

Benefits Beyond the Tenants

It’s not only the tenants in a commercial property who benefit from fiber connectivity. Developers and commercial property owners benefit as well. In addition to the positive impact on tenant demand and valuation, fiber connectivity can help them improve building security since fiber cables are far less vulnerable to cyberattacks. Fiber also enables the expanded use of smart thermostats and lighting as well as other IoT technologies to increase building efficiency and reduce costs. What’s more, the community at large reaps rewards when commercial properties within it offer fiber connectivity. It aids in economic growth by helping to attract new businesses and residents and support the growth of existing businesses.

Madison Communications offers fiber-based internet plans with speeds as fast as 1 GIG. To learn more, call 1-800-422-4848 or visit www.gomadison.com.