Free NYC Colocation Contract Review — Find Out If You're Overpaying in 24 Hours
The majority of NYC colocation contracts are above market rate. Most companies have no idea. Send us your contract and we’ll tell you exactly where you stand — free, within 24 hours, with no obligation to do anything about it.
We know what comparable companies are actually paying right now. If your contract is above market we will tell you by how much — and what your options are.
- 24-Hour Turnaround
- Current Market Rate Benchmarks
- No Obligation
- Completely Free
Why Most NYC Companies Are Overpaying For Colocation Right Now
The NYC colocation market has changed significantly in the last three years. Power costs have risen. Vacancy rates have fallen to historic lows. Demand from AI infrastructure buildout has tightened supply across every major facility.
The result is that companies who signed or renewed contracts in 2019, 2020, or 2021 are now in one of two situations — and most of them do not know which one they are in.
- Situation 1 — Locked in at below-market rates. Some companies that signed long-term deals before the market tightened are now paying below current market rates. Their contracts are actually a competitive advantage — predictable infrastructure costs locked in below what new deals are pricing at today. These companies should understand their position and protect it at renewal.
- Situation 2 — Above market and getting worse. Many companies signed contracts with annual escalation clauses — typically 3 to 5% per year — at a time when market rates were also escalating at similar rates.
As market rates have accelerated faster than contract escalation in some segments — and slowed in others — the relationship between contracted rates and market rates has shifted. Some companies are paying above market today on contracts that were at market when signed.
- The third and most common situation — no idea which category they are in. Most mid-market companies have never benchmarked their current contract against the market. They signed a deal, it is running, they pay the invoice every month, and they have no independent data point to evaluate whether what they are paying is reasonable. This is the situation 80% of our contract review clients are in when they come to us.
Not knowing is expensive. A company paying meaningfully above market on a mid-size deployment can easily be overpaying tens of thousands of dollars per year without knowing it. Contracts 20 to 40% above current market rates are not unusual — and the companies in them rarely know until someone runs the benchmark.
What Metro Colo Advisory Reviews — And What We Tell You
Our contract review is not a surface-level read. We look at every element that affects what you are paying now and what you will pay over the remaining life of the contract.
The Base Rate:
Your per-kW monthly rate compared to current NYC market rates for comparable deployments. This is the headline number — are you at market, above market, or below market for your specific power commitment, term length, and facility type.
The Escalation Clause:
Most colocation contracts include an annual escalation provision — your rate increases each year by a fixed percentage or CPI index. We evaluate whether your escalation rate is reasonable relative to market norms — typically 3% per year or below is acceptable — and whether there is a cap that protects you from runaway rate increases.
The Auto-Renewal Provision:
This is the most dangerous clause in many colocation contracts and the one most clients have never carefully read. Auto-renewal provisions automatically renew your contract for another full term — typically 1 to 3 years — unless you provide written notice of non-renewal within a specific window — typically 90 to 180 days before expiration. Missing this window locks you into another full term at whatever rate the facility decides to charge at renewal. We flag every auto-renewal provision and tell you exactly when your notice window opens.
The Minimum Power Commitment:
Your contracted minimum power draw — what you pay for regardless of actual usage. We evaluate whether your minimum commitment is appropriately sized for your actual usage pattern — over-committed minimums represent ongoing waste that compounds over the contract term.
Remote Hands Rates:
What you pay when you need on-site technical support. Some contracts include a reasonable monthly remote hands allocation — others leave rates open-ended creating potential for significant unexpected charges. We flag open-ended remote hands provisions and benchmark them against market norms.
Cross-Connect Fees:
Monthly fees for each network connection in your deployment. We evaluate whether your cross-connect rates are reasonable relative to current market and flag any provisions that give the facility unusual discretion to change cross-connect pricing during the contract term.
Early Termination Provisions:
What it costs to exit the contract before the end of term. We evaluate whether the termination penalty is standard — typically remaining months of contracted fees — or whether unusual provisions create additional exposure
Force Majeure and Acquisition Clauses:
Contracts that do not include protections for business circumstances outside your control — acquisitions, force majeure events, significant operational changes — leave you exposed in scenarios that are common in the mid-market. We flag missing or inadequate protections in these areas.
SLA and Uptime Guarantee:
What the facility promises in terms of uptime and what the remedy is if they fail to deliver. We evaluate whether the SLA matches the facility’s actual tier certification and whether the remedy — typically service credits — is proportionate to the business impact of downtime.
Is A Contract Review Right For You — Right Now?
A free contract review makes sense in any of these situations:
- Your contract is expiring in the next 12 to 18 months. This is the optimal window to benchmark your current contract and understand your negotiating position before the renewal conversation starts. Companies that begin renewal evaluation 12 months before expiration have significantly more leverage than companies that start 60 days before expiration.
- You have never benchmarked your contract against the market. If you signed your current contract without independent market data — which describes the majority of mid-market companies — you have no independent reference point for whether what you are paying is reasonable. A contract review gives you that reference point in 24 hours.
- Your contract auto-renewed without competitive evaluation. If your contract renewed automatically — or if you renewed without running a competitive process — there is a meaningful probability that you are paying above-market rates. Auto-renewal contracts are among the highest proportion of above-market contracts we review.
- Your monthly colocation invoice has been increasing and you are not sure why. Escalation clauses compound over multi-year contracts. A contract that was at market when signed may be meaningfully above market three or four years later if the escalation rate exceeded market rate movement. A review tells you exactly where you stand.
- You are planning to expand your infrastructure footprint. Adding power or space to your current deployment is a negotiating event. Before committing to an expansion with your current provider it is worth knowing whether your current contract is at market — and whether your expansion should be at your current facility or whether a new evaluation is warranted.
- You just want to know. You do not need a specific reason to want independent confirmation that your infrastructure costs are reasonable. It is a legitimate business question and we answer it for free.
How To Get Your Free Contract Review — Three Simple Steps
Step 1 — Fill Out The Form Below
Tell us your name, company, current facility, approximate monthly cost, and contract expiration date. This gives us the context to benchmark your situation before we review the document.
Step 2 — Send Us Your Contract
Email your current colocation contract to contact@metrocoloadvisory.com with the subject line: Contract Review Request. PDF format preferred. If you have a master service agreement and a separate order form send both. What if I'm concerned about confidentiality? Your contract is treated with complete confidentiality. We review it internally — it is never shared with any provider or third party without your explicit permission. We are reviewing it to advise you — not to shop it around.
Step 3 — Receive Your Review Within 24 Hours
We review your contract against current NYC market benchmarks and send you a written summary — market rate assessment, key clause flags, and our honest recommendation — within 24 hours of receiving the document.
What Happens After You Receive Your Review
You receive our written summary. From there the next step is entirely yours.
If your contract is at market and your terms are reasonable:
We tell you that clearly. We note when your auto-renewal window opens and suggest what to monitor as renewal approaches. There is nothing further to do until renewal gets closer — at which point we reach out proactively to run a competitive evaluation on your behalf.
If your contract is above market or has unfavorable terms:
We outline what your options are. If your contract has significant time remaining the options typically involve approaching your current provider about a mid-term amendment — possible in exchange for an early renewal or term extension — or planning a competitive evaluation for renewal. If your renewal is approaching soon we begin the competitive evaluation process immediately.
If you want to proceed with renegotiation or a competitive evaluation:
We handle the process on your behalf at no cost to you. We bring current market benchmark data to the negotiation, run a competitive evaluation with relevant alternatives, and manage the process through to a new contract. Our commission comes from whichever provider you ultimately sign with.
If you want to take the information and handle it yourself:
That is completely fine. We have given you the market intelligence you need. Use it however serves your business best. We are here if you want our help — but there is no obligation.
What Contract Reviews Have Found — Situations We See Regularly
The following scenarios are illustrative examples of the types of situations a contract review typically uncovers — not specific client cases.
Situation 1
- Auto-Renewed Contract 35% Above Market A 100-person financial technology company had been at their current Manhattan facility for six years.
- Their contract had auto-renewed twice without competitive evaluation.
- Their IT director submitted their contract for review skeptically — they assumed their long-term relationship with the facility meant they were getting good pricing.
What we found:
- Their current rate was 35% above the current market rate for comparable Manhattan deployments.
- Their escalation clause had compounded at 4% annually for six years — significantly above the market rate movement over the same period.
- Their auto-renewal window was opening in three months.
What happened:
- We began a competitive evaluation immediately.
- The competitive pressure from Digital Realty and CoreSite moved their current provider to a renewal rate 28% below what they had been paying — still slightly above the absolute market floor but dramatically better than their existing rate.
- Annual savings were substantial — representing a meaningful reduction in one of the company’s largest fixed infrastructure costs.
Situation 2
- Contract At Market With A Hidden Landmine a healthcare organization submitted their contract for review because their CFO had asked the IT director to verify they were getting a good deal.
- The base rate was at market.
What we found:
- The base rate was fine.
- The remote hands provision was not.
- Their contract had an open-ended remote hands rate — the facility could charge any rate they chose for on-site support.
- They had been paying $250 per hour for remote hands that should be costing $100 to $150 per hour.
- Additionally their auto-renewal notice window was 180 days — longer than standard — and it was opening in two months.
What happened:
- We flagged both issues.
- They negotiated a capped remote hands rate of $125 per hour and extended their notice window evaluation period.
- We estimated the remote hands cap alone would generate meaningful annual savings based on their historical usage pattern.
Situation 3
- Below-Market Contract Worth Protecting a quantitative trading firm submitted their contract for review at the suggestion of their CFO who had heard that colo prices were rising.
What we found:
- Their contract — signed in 2020 — was 18% below current market rates at Equinix NY4.
- Their escalation clause was capped at 2% annually.
- They were in an extraordinarily favorable position relative to the current market.
What happened:
- We advised them to do nothing except protect their renewal rights carefully.
- Their auto-renewal window was 14 months away.
- We set a reminder to begin renewal evaluation 12 months before expiration to ensure they either locked in another favorable term or had a competitive evaluation ready if Equinix tried to reset their rate at renewal.
Get Your Free Contract Review
Fill out this form and email your contract to contact@metrocoloadvisory.com.
We will come back within 24 hours with our honest assessment.
The Review Takes 24 Hours and Costs You Nothing
The worst outcome is finding out your contract is at market and you have nothing to worry about. The best outcome is finding out you are overpaying and having a clear path to fixing it. Either way you are better informed than you are right now.
No cost. No obligation. No sales pressure. Just honest information about whether your current colocation contract is serving your business well.
