Glossary

Reserved Parking vs. Unreserved Parking

Also known as: assigned parking

A distinction between parking spaces assigned exclusively to a specific tenant, employee, or unit number (reserved) and spaces available on a first-come, first-served basis to any authorized building user (unreserved).

Reserved parking commands a materially higher price per space — often two to three times the unreserved rate — because it guarantees availability and is typically located in the most convenient covered or garage locations closest to the building entrance, and it is a common negotiating point for anchor and full-floor tenants who want guaranteed spaces for executives or client visitors. Landlords must actively manage the mix of reserved-to-unreserved ratio across a parking facility, since over-allocating reserved spaces to one or two large tenants can leave insufficient unreserved capacity for smaller tenants and visitors during peak hours, creating a functional parking shortage even when the building's aggregate parking ratio appears adequate on paper.