BOMA Building Measurement Standards Guide

There are 6 currently maintained standards maintained by BOMA International.

Four are use specific:

• Office Buildings

• Industrial Buildings

• Retail Buildings

• Multi-Family & Hospitality Buildings

And two generic use standards:

• Mixed-Use Buildings

• Gross Building Areas

You will notice that each BOMA standard has multiple published versions. These standards are certified by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), which means they must be written and updated by a committee of industry professionals who reach consensus on every change. ANSI also requires that each standard be reviewed and either reaffirmed or updated every five years.

Because of that process, BOMA updates follow a roughly five year cycle, and older versions remain available. There is no regulation that forces owners to use BOMA or to use the latest edition, which is why you may see several versions in use at the same time. Solid Tech can help you decide which version best supports your objectives.

Due to these many standards, it is highly recommended that all users site the standard used clearly in any documentation sighting a measurement, including the ANSI/BOMA number and date for clarity.

Please note that the guidance here comes from that written in the standards themselves by BOMA. The BOMA standards also state that “governing documents” may dictate a standard to be used. In this way, users may choose any standard they think best fits their subject property simply by sighting it in documents such as lease agreements or letters of intent.