How do building locals connect buildings to tenants and cost allocation?

Building locals (units) are the key link in the chain that connects a physical building to its tenants and ultimately to cost allocation. Understanding this chain is essential:

The chain: Building → Locals → Tenants → Cost Allocation

You create a building with its total_area and rentable_area.
You add building locals — these represent the actual spaces tenants can rent. Each local has a name (e.g., "Office 301"), an area in square meters (area_sqm), a floor level, and a unit type (office, retail, workshop, warehouse, residential, etc.). Go to Buildings → select building → Units tab → Add Unit.
You assign tenants to locals. When a tenant signs a lease, you connect them to the specific locals they will occupy. Each assignment has its own move_in_date and move_out_date. A tenant can rent multiple locals (e.g., Office 301 + Storage B2). Go to Tenant Hub → select tenant → assign to building locals.
The tenant's effective area is calculated automatically. The system sums the area_sqm of all active locals assigned to that tenant. If Tenant A occupies Office 301 (150 m²) and Storage B2 (25 m²), their effective area is 175 m².
Cost allocation uses the effective area. When using the "By Area" method, each tenant's share is calculated as: (tenant effective area ÷ total active tenant area) × 100%.

Why locals matter for cost allocation

Locals define how much space each tenant occupies — this drives proportional cost splitting
When a tenant moves out of a local, their effective area decreases and allocation automatically adjusts
When a new tenant moves into a local, they pick up the cost share for that space

Example flow

Building has 3 locals: Office A (400 m²), Office B (400 m²), Retail C (200 m²)
Tenant X occupies Office A + Office B = 800 m² → pays 80% of common costs
Tenant Y occupies Retail C = 200 m² → pays 20% of common costs
Tenant X gives up Office B → their area drops to 400 m², shares are now 67%/33%

Where to manage locals: Buildings → select building → Units tab. Each local shows its name, area, type, floor, and which tenant is assigned.