Why is rent on an office cheaper than a flat and could i not move into an office?

With the money i would be saving i wouldn't need a kitchen i could live on takeaways!

The legalities for commercial and residential letting are very different. That is the main reason you can't live in an office. The Landlord has different responsibilities with each. It's annoying but it's life.

If you were to rent an office instead of a flat, you would not be protected by any of the legislation (i.e. Housing Act 1984, Landlord and Tenant Act 1987, Protection from Evicition Act 1977) which would be very unstable and not recommended.

Lol I often think that too.
Good question.

unfortunately it does not have all the amenities that qualify for living space

it must be zoned residential

You could do whatever you wanted to in an office space given the contract limitations.

However, the city may limit what you can have inside your office. You will probably have to get permits to allow you to put a kitchen and sink in it. which also means they would have to re-zone that area as a restaurant zone costing more money.

I don't know why rent is cheaper BUT it would be up to the landlord whether or not you could move into an office. Some buildings are for businesses ONLY. Wouldn't it be hard finding an office with a shower?

To start with you need planning permission for the premises to obtain change of use. Then you will find commercial rates are generally about 4 times that of residential rates. So you will probably find with other incidentals such as insurance you will be well out of pocket.

you are not allowed to live in a building that is not designated as residential, but you could always work very late a lot!!!

Good idea, but it doesnt work like that unfortunately.
All to do with Council Tax i think.
Not fair though is it. As some offices are really well placed.

most offices have a kitchen and if you go to the gym or pool the showers are always available. so yes you could live in your office.

Its all about zoning--- if the office space is not zoned residential, you can't legally live there.

no it is not deemed as residential in the usage zones ie b1 light industrial usage only it owuld be illegal and not have the right health and safety aspects for you to live in etc - cheaper as it is per square foot in an office residentail arent valued this way - the facilities in an office arent for normal usage

in the UK the two things stopping you.

the classification of the premises. it wont be residential

business premises still pay rates, not council tax.

Base rent for an office might be cheaper, but when you rent a commercial space, you will need to pay for common area maintenance, building property taxes and other fees. It is going to cost you more to get the utilities turned on because most businesses need to leave a larger deposit. Also, the landlord probably has in the lease that you can't live there. Plus, most landlords want at least a five year lease, where an apartment can be leased on a yearly basis.