Commercial Lease Attorney

Thomas H. Curran Associates’s real estate and transactional lawyers are deeply experienced in the intricacies and complexities of commercial lease representation.  The Firm has represented landlords and tenants in numerous commercial lease transactions involving office, retail and other space.

Mistakes made while negotiating commercial leases can hurt the bottom line of landlords or tenants for years. Commercial leases are typically long, complex documents that vary from transaction to transaction. However, that flexibility also provides more opportunities for drafting errors or for one of the parties to slip unfavorable terms into the agreement.

Most commercial leases fall into one of three broad categories. It benefits both the landlord and the tenant to understand the advantages and disadvantages of each type, as well as where there is often room to negotiate about terms. The three major types of commercial leases are:

• Gross or full-service leases where the rent covers all of the operating expenses for the property.
• Net leases are highly customizable but generally provide for the tenant to pay fixed costs such as the base rent, plus a pro rate portion of the property taxes, common area maintenance, and insurance. Net leases usually fall into one of four categories (explained in more detail below): single net leases, double net leases, triple net leases, and absolute triple net leases.
• Full-service gross or modified gross leases provide that the tenant and the landlord evenly split the costs of structural repairs, utilities, maintenance, insurance, and property taxes through a single base rental payment. These are sometimes known as modified net leases and are among the most common types of commercial leases for buildings with multiple tenants.

Net leases generally follow one of four models:

• Single net leases provide for the tenant to pay the landlord a set rent and a portion of the property tax while directly paying providers for utilities and other services. The landlord is responsible for other expenses related to the building.
• Double net leases provide that the tenant pay a portion of the insurance along with the base rent and part of the property tax. The tenant will still be responsible for utilities and other direct services.
• Triple net leases provide for the tenant to pay some or all of the property taxes, common area maintenance, and insurance in addition to the base rent.
• Absolute triple net lease provides for the tenant to take on all costs and enables it to take sole responsibility for the building. Since it is usually more beneficial to the tenant to simply purchase the building outright, this is the least common type of net lease.

As with most other commercial lease terms, the lease’s length is usually negotiable, but most run between 3-5 years with built-in term extension options. Key provisions that are the result of extensive negotiation amongst the parties include: events of default, force majeure, guarantees, termination, remedies on breach, indemnity, insurance, tenant improvements, CAM, and numerous other provisions typically found in commercial leases.

Commercial leases are often the most important business documents a commercial landlord or tenant will sign and both parties need the help of an experienced real estate attorney during negotiations. The experienced real estate lawyers at Thomas H. Curran Associates provide effective representation for clients in all aspects of the landlord/tenant relationship, including negotiating, drafting, and documenting commercial leases. Our attorneys have helped clients negotiate leases for all types of commercial spaces and have the skills necessary to handle both routine and complex agreements in a thorough, timely manner. Should a client need representation in a dispute over a commercial lease, the lawyers at Thomas H. Curran Associates have the experience and knowledge to guide them through the litigation process and effectively represent the client’s interest in litigation.