I never heard of one retail trader paying for a office space lease. It just wouldn't make since for a retail trader to do such alone. In contrast, there's usually a group of retail traders deciding its best to share the same office. One of the guys in our group had an apartment (studio) with a girlfriend that worked at night and she was home during his trading day...she's a loud snorer. Also, there was major construction next door to his apartment via the building of a large apartment complex. Simply, too noisy and he had very little privacy while trading from his apartment. It was too much of a distraction for him. Thus, he came into our group for a better trading environment. I guess you could look at it as that he wasn't bound/tied to trading from his studio apartment. In fact, all the traders in my group...their apartment or home wasn't a suitable trading environment. I myself did it because I needed help with my trading. It was worthwhile...I went from breakeven trader while trading from my apartment to a profitable trader when I moved to an office with other traders...very serious traders.
You're asking the question almost as if there's some objective "right answer". There isn't. Different people have different plans, lifestyles and objectives. I do think co-working spaces, in almost all big cities these days, can be a pretty attractive proposition for traders who want to avoid working at home. For myself, being able to work at home and not need to go out, to make a living, was (and still is) very high on my original list of reasons for being so determined to learn to make my living this way ... so I wouldn't dream of renting an office. But that's easy for me to say: I live on my own and don't like going out much, anyway. If I had to share the house with family, or whatever, I might feel completely differently about it. So I wouldn't presume to "recommend", at all.
Not worth the cost of having an office unless you need to meet with other people. Plus you have to drive to it so it's a waste of time and money.
A terrible idea Trading from a co working space would be pure hell. These spaces are designed so creative freelance Types can collaborate and chat with each other. The last thing a serious trader needs is a graphics artist or network marketer asking questions which is inevitable in a coworking environment.
i agree with your posts second home that paid for itself is always a good idea there is a lot of possibilities and longer-term benefit for your team-building -- i also agree with others about co-working space though you may need a private (and quiet) floor for your team and a private internet connection some CWS may have a network of offices around the country which is good if you need more flexibility and coordination
The first place that I saw using an entire home (a 2nd home) as the office was Stocks & Commodities magazine in West Seattle but I think they've moved now into a commercial location. I use to visit them often (once per month) and they would always give me a free magazine for the current month. The next was also in West Seattle. It was Art Wolfe (famous photographer) and he had a 2nd home as his office. That's when I started thinking about the 2 home ownership because he talked about the advantages...real kitchen, bathroom & shower, work out room and a patio to relax when needed. Then prior to moving to another country...I met an architect that owned 3 homes and 2 of them were only used as offices...one in the Queen Anne area and the other in the Capital Hill area. The architect himself actually lived on a house boat with his wife. He said the houses paid for themselves because he was renting them out to other architects. As for "co-working spaces", I like the ones that have available private conference rooms. First one I ever used was in Paris because I was visiting relatives and needed an office to trade without a bunch of kids running around with their fingers up their nose. The co-working office had a private area, open area and conference room. Great scenic view...nearby gym that I used often and great restaurants. I've use one here in Canada too and it was great. I needed it because my home was being remodeled and I couldn't trade at home in another room because of the loud distractions. I think co-working spaces are an excellent solution especially if you need something temporary for whatever reasons. Yet, if someone doesn't feel comfortable in working around others nearby or need something more than temporary...co-working may not be a good solution. In contrast, if you're networking with other traders...great solution if the group needs a temporary office. Owners of these places seem to prefer a group than individuals.
I would never rent with someone else. I want to be alone for my peace of mind. No risk that people watch when I am trading and can see my screens. No risk that other people try to get in my computer to copy anything. No need to hide papers and other stuff that might contain valuable information in a vault. In short nothing that can disturb me and get me out of concentration while trading.