The special situation of Lease Renewal

Why use an exclusive Tenant Representative when you renew your existing lease ...

... to save Money
... to save Time
... to avoid expensive Mistakes

Even if you have a great relationship with your current landlord, always keep in mind your landlord is in the business of maximizing profit on his property by obtaining the highest possible rents.  Until you hire an experienced Tenant Representative to protect your interests, your landlord will consider you a “captive” tenant, unwilling to incur the cost and inconvenience of relocating, and likely to pay above-market rates to renew your lease.  By engaging a Tenant Representative, your landlord is put on notice that you are aware of current market conditions, may consider relocation, and will insist on fair-market renewal terms.

When to renegotiate your existing lease—

Most commercial leases can be renegotiated at any time so long as there is an opportunity for both tenant and landlord to benefit.  For example, you may be willing to extend your lease term or take more space, thus offering a benefit for the landlord, in exchange for a reduction in rent or operating expense.  If you need to reduce the amount of space you use, you may offer your landlord a term extension, a higher rental rate, or a cash payment in exchange for reducing your space obligation.  Your Tenant Representative can assist you in evaluating your options under your current lease.

When to begin looking for new space—

How soon before your lease expiration you begin to look for space for your business depends on the size and complexity of your needs.  For relatively generic requirements under, say, 10,000 square feet, 6—9 months is probably adequate.  For larger spaces or more specialized requirements, 12 months is probably a minimum and 2 years is not unreasonable.

The real danger is not allowing enough time to adequately to explore all your options, identify alternatives, and negotiate the most favorable terms.  Furthermore, if your landlord senses you are under time pressure, he will likely be much more inflexible in negotiating renewal rates and terms.  

The sooner you start the process and engage a Tenant Representative to assist you in managing the renewal or relocation process, the more options you will have and the more time and money you will ultimately save.  Having adequate time to make smart decisions and negotiate the most favorable terms will pay off handsomely.