Korea Office Fit-Out Trade Estimate & Move-In Cash Flow Calculator

Normalize thirteen Korean office fit-out trades, contingency, and 10% VAT, then stage contract, progress, move-in, deposit, allowance, and refund cash to find peak funding and any gap.

Trade amounts and the 20/50/30 payment split are fictional examples, not market benchmarks.

Replace every value with the actual trade schedule, lease terms, and confirmed funding.

1. Scale and approved budget

Use the same area basis as the quotes and enter the VAT-inclusive approved cash budget.

Area unit
pyeong

Use either net or leased area consistently across every quote.

KRW

Enter the VAT-inclusive cash budget for the works.

2. Trade-by-trade estimate

Put every trade on one VAT basis and remove overlapping scope.

KRW

Detailed design, drawings, supervision and site management

KRW

Protection, demolition, disposal and enabling reinstatement

KRW

Drywall and glass partitions, doors, joinery and acoustics

KRW

Grid, tiles, acoustic finishes and access panels

KRW

Raised floor, carpet or vinyl tile and skirting

KRW

Paint, film, wallcovering and surface finishes

KRW

Distribution, wiring, outlets, lighting and controls

KRW

Cabling, Wi-Fi, access, CCTV and meeting-room AV

KRW

Equipment, ductwork, ventilation and controls

KRW

Confirmed detector, sprinkler-head and exit-sign work

KRW

Water, drainage, sinks, pantry and sanitary fixtures

KRW

Reception, storage, custom furniture and signage

KRW

Confirmed scope not captured by another trade

3. Contingency, VAT and payments

Convert trade totals to cash cost and place payments relative to move-in.

%
VAT in trade quotes
mo

Whole number from 1 to 24

mo

Whole number from 0 to 24

%
%
%

The three payment rates must total exactly 100%.

4. Move-in flows and funding

Enter zero for any allowance, refund, or financing limit that is not confirmed.

KRW

Refundable principal, but still part of peak funding.

KRW
KRW
KRW

Cash ring-fenced at move-in, not construction expense.

KRW
KRW
KRW
KRW
%

Stress added on top of the base cash fit-out cost.

Estimate and move-in funding summary

Cash fit-out cost

KRW 145,200,000

KRW 1,452,000 / pyeong

Peak funding need

KRW 357,200,000

Maximum cumulative need before confirmed receipts

Base funding gap

KRW 27,200,000

Compared with cash plus confirmed financing

Net cash use after receipts

KRW 237,200,000

Outflows less allowance and old-deposit refund

Budget, tax and payment check

Entered trade subtotal
KRW 120,000,000
Contingency
KRW 12,000,000
Net supply value
KRW 132,000,000
VAT
KRW 13,200,000
Approved budget remaining
KRW 4,800,000
Available liquidity
KRW 330,000,000

Fit-out payment allocation

20% · 50% · 30% = 100%

Trade estimate breakdown

Entered office fit-out amount and share by trade
TradeEntered amountShare
Design and project managementKRW 6,000,0005%
Demolition and wasteKRW 8,000,0006.7%
Partitions and carpentryKRW 18,000,00015%
CeilingKRW 8,000,0006.7%
FlooringKRW 10,000,0008.3%
Painting and finishesKRW 7,000,0005.8%
Electrical and lightingKRW 14,000,00011.7%
Network, security and AVKRW 10,000,0008.3%
HVAC and ventilationKRW 15,000,00012.5%
Fire safetyKRW 5,000,0004.2%
Plumbing and pantryKRW 4,000,0003.3%
Built-ins and signageKRW 12,000,00010%
Other confirmed worksKRW 3,000,0002.5%

Move-in cash-flow schedule

Stage cash flows from contract through post-move settlement
StageTimingFit-out paymentOther outflowConfirmed inflowStage netCumulative net
Contract and startM-3KRW 29,040,000KRW 150,000,000KRW 0-KRW 179,040,000-KRW 179,040,000
Construction progressM-2KRW 72,600,000KRW 0KRW 0-KRW 72,600,000-KRW 251,640,000
Completion and move-inMove-in M0KRW 43,560,000KRW 62,000,000KRW 0-KRW 105,560,000-KRW 357,200,000
Post-move settlementM+1KRW 0KRW 0KRW 120,000,000KRW 120,000,000-KRW 237,200,000

Additional-cost stress

Additional fit-out cost
KRW 14,520,000
Stress peak funding
KRW 371,720,000
Stress funding gap
KRW 41,720,000

Related calculators

An office fit-out needs a scope map and a cash schedule

A price per pyeong or a contractor headline total is not enough to fund an office move-in.
One proposal may include lighting and air conditioning in its base package, while another excludes them as separate trades.
Network cabling, access control, meeting-room AV, custom joinery, and landlord requirements may also be purchased directly by the tenant rather than by the main contractor.
A quote that looks cheaper can require more cash once exclusions, contingency, VAT, and payment timing are put on the same basis.

This Korea-specific calculator normalizes thirteen office fit-out trades and then places cash at four events: contract and start, construction progress, completion and move-in, and post-move settlement.
A refundable new lease deposit and a working-capital reserve are not construction expense, but they still consume liquidity before opening.
Confirmed landlord allowances and the expected net refund of the old deposit are kept as later receipts, so the peak funding requirement remains visible instead of being netted away too early.

Facilities and administration

Map competing proposals into the same thirteen trades and expose omitted scope before comparing totals.

Finance and treasury

See when fit-out payments and deposits overlap, then compare peak need with cash and confirmed financing.

IT and security

Keep cabling, Wi-Fi, access control, CCTV, and room AV visible rather than burying them in a building package.

Management approval

Test whether both the base plan and an additional-cost stress can reach move-in without an unplanned funding gap.

How to normalize the thirteen trades

The label used by a vendor matters less than the actual inclusion.
Power serving a glass partition might appear under partitions in one quote and electrical work in another.
HVAC controls can sit under mechanical work, controls, or low-voltage cabling.
Choose one destination for each quote line, remove duplicate scope, and do not leave a required package at zero merely because the main contractor excluded it.
Keep the original line reference beside the mapped trade so a later variation can be traced to the correct budget owner.

Office fit-out trade groups, typical scope, and quote boundaries
Trade groupTypical scopeBoundary to confirm
Design and enablingDesign, project management, protection, demolition, and wasteSite supervision, after-hours work, disposal quantity, and lift charges
Architectural finishesPartitions, carpentry, ceiling, flooring, paint, film, and wall finishesGlass specification, acoustics, raised floor, existing-finish repairs, and final cleaning
Power and informationElectrical distribution, lighting, network, security, and AVCapacity upgrade, racks and active equipment, carrier work, access control, and meeting-room hardware
Mechanical and safetyHVAC, ventilation, fire-safety changes, plumbing, and pantryBase-building interfaces, testing, permits, ceiling repair, controls, and commissioning
Built-ins and otherReception, storage, custom furniture, signage, and confirmed other workLoose furniture, delivery, installation, graphics, disposal, and reuse of existing assets

Contingency and VAT are calculated on one cash basis

VAT-exclusive quotes

The thirteen-trade subtotal plus contingency is treated as the net supply value.
Cash fit-out cost adds Korean VAT at 10%.
With the KRW 120,000,000 example and 10% contingency, the net supply value is KRW 132,000,000, VAT is KRW 13,200,000, and cash fit-out cost is KRW 145,200,000.

VAT-inclusive quotes

The trade subtotal plus contingency is already the gross cash amount.
Embedded VAT is separated by dividing gross cash by 1.1 and taking the difference.
With the same entries, cash fit-out cost is KRW 132,000,000, the net supply value is KRW 120,000,000, and embedded VAT is KRW 12,000,000.

Displayed VAT is not a recovery decision

The calculator separates VAT to align contract cash payments.
Business-registration timing, taxable and exempt activities, valid tax invoices, shared input tax, and non-deductible items can change the amount and timing of any credit or refund.
Do not reduce peak funding by an assumed tax refund.
Track it as a separate receipt only after a Korean tax professional has confirmed the amount and expected date.

Four events connect the contract to move-in liquidity

  1. Contract and start: place the contract fit-out payment and the new lease deposit at the entered lead time before move-in.
    A deposit may remain refundable, but it still increases peak cash when it is paid before the old deposit is returned.
  2. Construction progress: place the progress payment around the midpoint between contract and move-in.
    If the actual contract has several certified payments, preserve the exact dates in a detailed treasury sheet and aggregate only for this four-event view.
  3. Completion and move-in: combine the fit-out balance with overlap occupancy, moving, cleaning, IT cutover, and the working-capital reserve.
    The reserve is not assumed to be spent, but it is unavailable to fund construction if it must remain intact after opening.
  4. Post-move settlement: record only a contractually confirmed landlord contribution and the expected net old-deposit refund after the entered delay.
    Set uncertain oral commitments, unapproved support, or an undated deposit refund to zero in the funding case.

Payment rates must total exactly 100%

Contract, progress, and completion percentages split the full VAT-inclusive cash fit-out cost.
The calculation stops if they do not total 100%, because the schedule would otherwise omit or duplicate project cash.
The default 20%, 50%, and 30% split is a demonstration assumption, not a standard Korean contract term.
Replace it with the executed payment conditions.

Worked example: a 100-pyeong office

The default trade subtotal is KRW 120,000,000.
Adding 10% contingency and 10% VAT produces a cash fit-out cost of KRW 145,200,000.
The model allocates 20% at contract, 50% at progress, and 30% at move-in.
A KRW 150,000,000 new deposit and KRW 62,000,000 of overlap, cutover, and reserve cash are paid before a KRW 20,000,000 landlord allowance and KRW 100,000,000 old-deposit refund arrive one month later.

Move-in cash flow for the default 100-pyeong office example
EventFit-out paymentOther outflowConfirmed inflowCumulative net
Contract and startKRW 29,040,000KRW 150,000,000KRW 0-KRW 179,040,000
Construction progressKRW 72,600,000KRW 0KRW 0-KRW 251,640,000
Completion and move-inKRW 43,560,000KRW 62,000,000KRW 0-KRW 357,200,000
Post-move settlementKRW 0KRW 0KRW 120,000,000-KRW 237,200,000

Base funding gap: KRW 27,200,000

Peak funding at move-in is KRW 357,200,000.
Available cash of KRW 250,000,000 plus confirmed financing of KRW 80,000,000 provides KRW 330,000,000.
The later receipts do not remove the need to fund the completion payment and working-capital reserve first.

Stress funding gap: KRW 41,720,000

A further 10% of cash fit-out cost adds KRW 14,520,000 at completion after the base contingency has already been included.
Stress peak funding becomes KRW 371,720,000 and the gap rises to KRW 41,720,000.
Management can then decide whether to secure more committed liquidity, reduce scope, or renegotiate timing before contract.

Step-by-step workflow with actual proposals

  1. Mark the area basis and VAT treatment on every proposal.
    Do not mix quotes based on net usable area with quotes based on leased or contractual area without reconciling them.
  2. Map each quote line to one of the thirteen trades and add direct purchases by the tenant.
    Ask vendors to clarify uncertain inclusions and retain the written response with the comparison schedule.
  3. Enter the approved budget, contingency, and common VAT basis to calculate gross cash cost and the resulting per-pyeong and per-square-metre indicators.
    Those unit indicators compare options; they are not an automatic market quote.
  4. Replace the example contract, progress, and completion percentages with the construction contract and enter the real lead time.
    Preserve exact dates for multiple certified payments in a detailed weekly or monthly cash ledger.
  5. Add the new deposit, overlap occupancy, moving and cutover, reserve, confirmed receipts, available cash, and committed financing.
    Use a landlord allowance only after scope, cap, certification, and payment timing are documented.
  6. Compare base and stress peaks, then change scope, payment terms, cash, or confirmed finance until the funding gap is deliberately resolved.
    Reconcile the final output to the executed payment schedule.

Three results that should not be mixed

Cash fit-out cost

This is the trade subtotal, contingency, and VAT paid for construction-related scope. It excludes the new deposit, the working-capital reserve, and the later old-deposit refund.

Peak funding need

This is the largest cumulative deficit created when outflows precede receipts. It includes refundable deposits and ring-fenced reserve cash because both still need to be available at the relevant event.

Net cash use after confirmed receipts

This is total modeled outflow less the confirmed landlord allowance and old-deposit refund. It is not the same as accounting expense, tax basis, depreciable cost, or a legal measure of loss.

Quote comparison and pre-contract checklist

  • Align drawing revision, area basis, construction period, and permitted work hours across every proposal.
  • Confirm material models and quantities, delivery, lifting, disposal, protection, commissioning, and final cleaning by trade.
  • Reconcile base-building interfaces, landlord approval, and reinstatement obligations with the lease.
  • Obtain qualified review of fire safety, electrical capacity, telecom, structure, egress, and use-related requirements.
  • Link deposits and progress payments to objectively reviewable deliverables rather than dates alone.
  • Define who can approve a variation, the pricing evidence required, schedule impact, and the written change process.
  • Confirm eligible landlord-allowance scope, invoices, completion certification, cap, and payment date before treating it as a receipt.
  • Enter the old-deposit refund net of expected deductions and use the expected actual return date.
  • Keep the working-capital reserve separate from construction contingency so an overrun does not silently consume operating cash.

Korea-specific legal and modeling limits

The tool does not determine compliance or workmanship

This is a trade-cost and cash-timing planner.
It does not decide whether fire, electrical, telecom, building, gas, sanitation, capacity, egress, compartmentation, structural, permit, filing, or inspection requirements apply.
It does not decide workmanship, defects, delay, variations, retention, bonds, warranties, reinstatement, landlord consent, or deposit-refund liability.
Obtain project-specific review from the relevant authorities and qualified Korean professionals.

Four events are a management summary, not a replacement for the contract payment ledger.
Projects with trade-specific advances, several progress claims, equipment deposits, retention, and post-completion defect settlement need a weekly or monthly cash schedule as well.
The calculator does not model financing interest, depreciation, corporate or personal income tax, lease accounting, input-VAT refund timing, or the time value of money.

Frequently asked questions

Do I enter a price per pyeong?

No. Enter actual lump-sum amounts by trade. The calculator divides the resulting gross cash fit-out cost by pyeong and square metres only as an output for comparing options. Break any vendor unit rate into the same trade scope before entering it.

Should loose desks, chairs, and laptops go under built-ins?

Custom reception, storage, and construction-integrated joinery can sit under built-ins. Mobile furniture and laptops are often clearer in the move and cutover amount or a separate fixed-asset schedule, provided they are not counted again elsewhere.

Why not subtract the landlord allowance from fit-out cost?

If the tenant pays contractors first and receives the allowance after completion certification, netting it against cost would understate peak funding. The model preserves the order by showing full project payments and a later confirmed receipt.

Can I enter the full old lease deposit as a refund?

Use the expected net amount after arrears, reinstatement, damage, or agreed deductions. If the return date is uncertain, increase the settlement delay or run a conservative case with the refund set to zero.

Why is working capital included in total outflow?

It is not classified as construction expense, but it must remain available for payroll, occupancy, and operations after move-in. Because it cannot safely fund the completion payment, it belongs in peak liquidity while remaining outside cash fit-out cost.

Are 10% contingency and 10% stress official benchmarks?

No. They are editable demonstration assumptions, not statutory rates, official statistics, or market standards. Set them from design maturity, site investigation, existing-service uncertainty, programme risk, and the contract change process.

Can an expected VAT refund be included in liquidity?

The calculator does not determine recoverability or timing. Track a refund separately only after tax status, valid invoices, deductible amount, and receipt date have been confirmed by a Korean tax professional.

Official source and update basis

  • The Korean National Law Information OPEN API returned the current Value-Added Tax Act as law ID 001571 and MST 276117, effective January 2, 2026.
  • Article 30, retrieved with article code 003000, sets the VAT rate at 10%.
    The current text was rechecked on August 6, 2026.
  • NIST Handbook 135e2022 is used only as a method reference for separating initial cash, refundable funding, and receipts.
    It does not supply Korean office fit-out prices or payment terms.
  • Every trade amount, contingency, payment split, programme, allowance, deposit refund, and financing limit remains an actual quote, contract, or treasury input.

Primary-source record: Korean Value-Added Tax Act Article 30

Recalculate with the actual trade schedule and payment terms

Align scope, VAT, contingency, and payment timing on one cash basis instead of comparing headline totals alone.
Confirm that both base and additional-cost stress peaks fit within committed liquidity before finalizing scope and move-in date.