Customer
Castellum’s subsidiaries shall offer appropriate premises and service, satisfying their customer’s needs. Thanks to the local presence, Castellum’s employees get a close relation to their customers and knowledge both about their needs and the local situation and development. A concentrated portfolio of properties in each place gives the customers good possibility to develop within the Castellum portfolio.
Good and long-term customer relations are a prerequisite for creating growth in Castellum. The work is regularly followed-up in customer questionnaires.
Being close to the customer
Castellum’s organization with local subsidiaries provides close relations to the customers and short decision making processes. The employees of Castellum work near the market which gives a natural opportunity to receive information about the customers’ current and future operations. Thereby the customers can be offered solutions with premises corresponding to their needs, good personal service and quick answers.
As one of the largest real estate owners on each of the local markets Castellum co-operate with municipalities and are active in local networks, such as company associations.
The subsidiaries regularly distribute information through customer newspapers and the web.
Castellum’s customers reflect Swedish economy
Castellum has approx. 4,600 commercial contracts, with good risk exposure regarding both geography, type of premises, length of contracts and fields of industry of the customer. The single largest contract makes up for approx. 1% of Castellum’s total rental income.
Commercial leases
The most common terms for a new lease is 3-5 years with a nine months notice and rents are paid quarterly in advance. The rental level can be changed when the lease in question is due for renegotiation.
Lease contracts usually contain a so called base-rent, i.e. the rental level at the time of signing, and an index clause which provides for a yearly upward adjustment by a certain percentage, of the inflation previous year or a minimum upward adjustment.
Lease contracts usually contain an addition for the tenant’s share of the property’s total cost for heating, cooling and property tax.
Satisfied customers
It is important that Castellum meets the customers’ expectations. To follow up and evaluate efforts made, an external customer survey is carried out annually, Satisfied Customer Index. The survey shows both the customers’ general opinion about Castellum and how Castellum performs in the areas service, business relation, premises, the property, environment and information.
The survey which was carried out 2011 and included office, warehouse, industry- and retail properties, measured a majority of Castellums’ larger customers. The survey shows a weighted index of 75 on a scale of 100, which is higher then the nechmark in the industry.
A large portion of the surveyed customers, 88%, replies willing to lease from Castellum again and gladly recommends Castellum as a landlord to others.
Leasing activity
Castellum has a high lease activity. During 2011 , the organization signed new contracts with a total annual value of SEKm 310. The leasing activity shows the importance of taking care of the customers and the networks. Of the new signed contracts 73% came from own networks, recommendations or existing customer expansions, while 12% came from web pages, and 15% came through agents.
