This multi-part series, Leasing Strategies and Issues, is authored by Daniel A. Peterson, a real estate attorney for Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin. This is a multi-part series that addresses leasing issues and concerns for small business owners. This first installment discusses factors the small business owner should be aware of when negotiating a lease. Future installments will address lease administration, the relationship with your landlord, termination issues, acquisitions and other real estate issues.
Leases are long and detailed, and the parties ever more sophisticated.
Although the advice of counsel is critical, you need to be aware of the meaning of certain terms and the issues you will face when negotiating your lease. As a small business owner, you need all the leverage you can muster, so the more familiar you are with the issues surrounding your lease, the better negotiations will go for you. Although it may seem self-evident, you need to fully understand the implications of the language used in the lease. When a form lease is used, many tenants have a tendency to ignore significant portions of text for the sake of expediency and dismiss it as boilerplate. While your knowledge does not substitute for the representation of an attorney in such matters which is critical it does further empower you at the negotiating table.