Hi Kaylyn,
Short answer: No penalty.
Here's the long answer...
At Foundery our coworking memberships are all month-to-month.
Memberships are pre-paid on the 1st of each month, but there is no commitment
beyond the calendar month.
Even with our private office package options, we only require a 'last month's
deposit' and 60 days notice to move out, with no mandatory lease term or
membership commitment beyond the 60 days.
We also have members who travel between cities and spaces, pausing and
reactivating membership as required. There is no fee or penalty to do so.
The flexibility is what makes coworking memberships attractive and accessible
for many of our members (especially freelancers and those just starting out) as
they may have trouble predicting their income or guaranteeing a consistent
revenue stream in those early days.
If you are paid up (membership is in good standing) your key works. If you
don't buy a membership that month, your key doesn't work. We use a very simple
system.
I am curious as to why you require the one-year term?
I understand a notice clause or charging a penalty if the member's actions
cause you to lose income (like the '60 days notice' clause to re-lease our
offices) but wouldn't you just replace the member who is leaving with another
member?
My advice would be to do away with the one-year term altogether, but since you
already have an agreement in place, your options are to enforce it or to modify
the agreement with this member.
I would suggest asking this member to cover 1 month as you find a new member to
replace him.
I should note that although everyone has the option for month-to-month
flexibility in The Foundery Buildings, we've had Creative Blueprint members
stay with us for more than 8 years now and many of our original Foundery
members still work there after 4 years, month-to-month.
The month-to-month option doesn't necessarily translate into short-term members.
Building a solid, strong community is a big part of our core mission.
For many the flexibility is simply peace of mind, allowing them to focus on
more important things (like their work) and to thrive because of that.
Ashley
Creative Blueprint & Foundery
On 2015-05-29, at 3:37 PM, Kaylyn Gelata wrote:
> At our coworking space, most members sign up for the Monthly Membership which
> is on a one-year basis. We have them sign something that states this clearly,
> and says that if they choose to leave the contract early, they would need to
> buy out of it in full.
> Recently, a member decided to quit, and to buy out the remainder of his
> membership, he'd owe $1,600. There's no way he was going to pay that... What
> do you charge for this penalty? What do you think is fair to enforce the
> one-year term?
>
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