Understand every lease before you sign it. Plain English guides to clauses, deposits, renewals, and the terms that matter most.
Every commercial building eventually needs a new roof, a new HVAC system, or a major elevator overhaul. These are capital expenses, big-ticket items with long useful lives, and...
Common area maintenance charges, usually called CAM, are one of the largest variable costs in a commercial lease. Inside that CAM bill sits a line item that puzzles...
In a commercial lease, your share of operating expenses depends on how full the building is. That sounds strange at first, but the logic is simple. Many building...
In a commercial lease, your rent is only part of what you pay. Operating expenses, the costs of running the building, are passed through to tenants in most...
A right of first offer, known as a ROFO, gives you the first chance to lease space before the landlord offers it to anyone else. Unlike a right...
A right of first refusal, often shortened to ROFR, gives you the chance to match a third party's offer before the landlord leases space to someone else. When...
Businesses grow, and growing businesses need more space. An expansion option is a lease clause that gives you the right to take additional space in the building, usually...
A renewal option is a tenant's contractual right to extend a lease beyond its original term. It is one of the most valuable clauses a tenant can secure,...
Buried in most commercial leases is a short clause that can make or break a business: the permitted use clause. It defines what you are allowed to do...
A letter of intent, often called an LOI, is usually the first written step in a commercial lease deal. It is a short document that summarizes the key...