(pronounced BIHL-ding KAH-mehn EHR-ee-uh)

This is one of those commercial real estate / facility management / property management terms that you will encounter when practicing either corporate design or tenant development. Its accuracy is important because it affects the rate a tenant will pay to lease space in a building. The Building Common Area is the “fully enclosed space within a building that benefits all occupants of that building but which does not accommodate a tenant’s personnel, furniture, fixtures or equipment.” Sometimes it might include auxiliary spaces like loading docks, central electrical and HVAC area, or the building operations office. A typical, safe example is the entry lobby of an office building.