Planning Tips to Negotiate a Better Lease

• Plan your lease payment due date
• Plan to inspect HVAC equipment
• Plan for a smoother business transition

It all comes down to negotiating with your landlord!

In the last few weeks I've been speaking with a client who was looking at buying a business and taking over it's current leased location. While they hadn't yet gone into a detailed review of the various agreements that were in place, the tips provided by The Lease Coach in this BLOG have been very helpful! 

We've always encouraged our business clients to engage the services of experienced professionals to assist them with aspects of business where the professionals can add tremendous value. And our network of professional contacts continues to grow!

Here are some more great tips and suggestions from our friends at The Lease Coach. Thank you Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield for sharing the following helpful insights with our "Business Success" audience!

Dale Willerton

Jeff Grandfield

Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies

Commercial Leasing Tips for Commercial Tenants

By: Jeff Grandfield – The Lease Coach 

For many business-owners, negotiating a good lease or lease renewal against an experienced agent or landlord can be a challenge. While an entrepreneur focuses on marketing and managing, savvy real estate agents and brokers are specialized sales people. Their job is to sell tenants on leasing their location at the highest possible rental rate. 

 
As explained in our new book, Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (co-written with my colleague, Dale Willerton), tenants may go through the leasing process only two or three times in their entire lifetime – yet they have to negotiate against seasoned professionals who negotiate leases every day for a living. Negotiating appropriate leasing terms is vital for an entrepreneur as the amount of rent he pays will directly affect the business’ financial bottom line.

Whether you are leasing a new location for the first time or negotiating a lease renewal for your business, these are some money-saving tips for tenants:

Change the Day the Rent is Due: For many small or medium-sized tenants, the monthly rent represents a larger portion of their overhead. Paying the rent on the first of the month can often be a hardship. This is because other expenses such as payroll, loan payments, equipment leases, etc. also come due that same day. During lease negotiations, or even during the lease term, you can often request and get permission to pay your rent on the 10^th day of the month or even later. Ask … just what have you got to lose?

Check Out the HVAC System: If you occupy strip mall space or a building has a designated Heating, Ventilation and Air-Conditioning (HVAC) unit, then your lease probably says that you are responsible for the repairs to and/or replacement of that HVAC unit. While most property managers have preventative maintenance inspections done, you can stipulate that the HVAC unit be thoroughly inspected and repaired before accepting responsibility for it. Without such inspection, you may be stuck with a large HVAC replacement cost that you were not anticipating.

Anticipate Your Lease Assignment: Landlords anticipate that you will eventually sell your business and that you will want to assign your lease agreement – you should too! Some lease agreements say that the landlord can unilaterally terminate your agreement rather than grant an assignment. On the other hand, a landlord can automatically raise the rent for the new tenant (the buyer). Check this clause very carefully before you knowingly agree to it – then negotiate for changes.

For a copy of our free CD, Leasing Do’s & Don’ts for Commercial Tenants, please e-mail your request to DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com.

Jeff Grandfield and Dale Willerton - The Lease Coach are Commercial Lease Consultants who work exclusively for tenants. Jeff and Dale are professional speakers and co-authors of Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (Wiley, 2013). Got a leasing question? Need help with your new lease or renewal? Call 1-800-738-9202, e-mail DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com  or JeffGrandfield@TheLeaseCoach.com or visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com.

What's been your experience with the space you've rented or leased? We'd be delighted to have you add your comments and helpful suggestions for our audience. Thank you in advance for sharing this post with those in your circle of contacts!



* In Closing:  How is your BUSINESS PLAN being used to guide you and your business into a better future?

Pro-Vision Solutions Inc. has a number of helpful ways to develop your BUSINESS PLAN! 

Simply CLICK for more information and details from our NEW Website!

Changing Times and Your Commercial Lease ...

IF there's ONE thing we know for sure, it's that things CHANGE! 

With that in mind, we know intuitively that we need to stay in touch with the needs of our customers. It’s likely that we’ll also keep our eyes and ears open to the things happening around us. But when it comes to the location that we operate from, how will the need for space to run the business continue to be met as things CHANGE around you? Planning for those needs is something that we need to carefully consider in advance. 

Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield

Because occupancy cost can be a significant item of expense, it warrants that some thought be given to how and when those needs will likely need to be addressed.

Here are some more great ideas related to this and other leasing considerations from our friends at The Lease Coach. 



Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies

Commercial Leasing Tips for Commercial Tenants

By: Jeff Grandfield – The Lease Coach 

For many business-owners, negotiating a good lease or lease renewal against an experienced agent or landlord can be a challenge. While an entrepreneur focuses on marketing and managing, savvy real estate agents and brokers are specialized sales people. Their job is to sell tenants on leasing their location at the highest possible rental rate. 

As explained in our new book, Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (co-written with my colleague, Dale Willerton), tenants may go through the leasing process only two or three times in their entire lifetime – yet they have to negotiate against seasoned professionals who negotiate leases every day for a living. Negotiating appropriate leasing terms is vital for an entrepreneur as the amount of rent he pays will directly affect the business’ financial bottom line.

Whether you are leasing a new location for the first time or negotiating a lease renewal for your business, these are some money-saving tips for tenants:

Select the Best Lease Length:  While a five-year lease term is still the most common, it is not necessarily the best term for your company. One year, three years, or even ten years may be a better fit for your business and a big factor will be the cost of leasehold improvements. If the cost of leasehold improvements is low enough, you may prefer a shorter term for flexibility. If this cost is substantial, you may require a longer lease term to amortize the costs. Agents, typically, receive a higher landlord-paid commission when you agree to a longer lease term so they will be motivated and push you to sign for a longer lease term. The landlord, however, may be flexible. Take the term that is best for your business.

Who Should Be The Tenant: Don`t enter into a lease agreement (or an Offer to Lease) under your personal name. This will make you personally liable for everything. Instead, form a corporation or holding company that will become the tenant. If you are negotiating on locations, but don`t intend to incorporate until a later date, then the Offer to Lease should state that the tenant is Your Name on behalf of a company to be incorporated (or Nominee). If you are opening multiple locations, it is often wise to form a new company for each lease agreement as further protection. Corporations also have tax benefits over sole proprietorships.

Operating Cost / CAM Queries: Operating Costs / Common Area Maintenance (CAM) often make up a large portion of the gross rent a tenant pays. Before you lease, ask the landlord and existing tenants if Operating Costs have increased much over the past year. While the Base/Minimum Rent is fixed, Operating Costs are adjusted yearly and tend to rise more often than fall. Landlords managing their own property may tend to over-spend to maintain or increase property value.

For a copy of our free CD, Leasing Do’s & Don’ts for Commercial Tenants, please e-mail your request to DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com.

Jeff Grandfield and Dale Willerton - The Lease Coach are Commercial Lease Consultants who work exclusively for tenants. Jeff and Dale are professional speakers and co-authors of Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (Wiley, 2013). Got a leasing question? Need help with your new lease or renewal? Call 1-800-738-9202, e-mail DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com  or JeffGrandfield@TheLeaseCoach.com or visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com.

* Have you included your business location plans into your Business PLAN? 

NOTE: This is an area where Pro-Vision Solutions Inc. can assist ... for more details CLICK HERE

What are your comments or additional helpful suggestions for entrepreneurs? 

Let us know your thoughts and please share this with those in your circle of contacts!

Could a Trademark Protect Your Brand?

Do you have a trademark to protect the value you're building in your brand? 

Over the past year, this type of question has come up in conversation with a couple of my clients.  As they've been looking further into the future and considering the potential increase in the value of their business, they're wondering how to best protect important aspects of their business brand.  

To provide an informative response on this, we've called upon Gregory Pang with RedFrame Law in Edmonton.  Gregory's practice focuses on business, trademark and copyright law with RedFrame Law in Association with Nicholl & Akers. He enjoys serving exciting startups, dynamic small businesses and film & television production companies. Follow Gregory on Twitter @cyclaw.  

Gregory is one of the many business professionals we're pleased to have in our circle of contacts. It's the expertise and collaborative spirit of individuals such as Gregory, that allows us to share these valuable insights with our circle of contacts. As we've often said, ‘there’s more to be gained by working together than can be achieved on our own.’ 

Please feel free to pass these and future posts along to those within your circle of contacts. We look forward to continuing to provide some of the wisdom that others have shared along their entrepreneurial journey.

NOW, please enjoy the following article, provided by Gregory Pang:

One of the most common questions I get from clients is: Should I trademark my name/slogan/logo? 

Gregory Pang

With a registered trademark, your rights go beyond that of those in an unregistered trademark, to which you also have certain rights under the Canadian Trade-marks Act. The challenge of protecting an unregistered trademark is that your main remedy is called “passing off”, which can be difficult to prove, because of the technical requirements and such a court action only fits a narrow set of circumstances. 

Only registered trademark owners can sue for trademark infringement. While you have to still make out your case to the court when suing for infringement, you would have one strong advantage: the law assumes that trademark registration is proof that you own that trademark. It will be up to the person you are suing to prove that they are not infringing and/or to bring forward evidence that they have better rights to the trademark. So, immediately, you would be in a position of strength with a registered trademark. 

Perhaps just as important, your registration gives you 15 years (about to change to 10 years next year) of exclusive rights to your trademark, which is renewable when that time is up. Your registration rights include, among other things, the protection against others using trademarks that are “confusing” with yours. This is a powerful, because your registration rights do not just protect you from someone using exactly your trademark, but also protection from someone using something similar to your trademark so that it can be considered “confusing” with your trademark. 

As a somewhat absurd example, someone’s use of the mark Moca-Cola for soft coffee-flavoured beverages would most likely be deemed confusing with the registered Coca-Cola trademark, and thus could be subject to a trademark infringement claim. While this may also qualify as “passing off”, the availability to (also) sue for trademark infringement would give the owner of the Coca-Cola trademark very powerful tools for enforcing its trademark rights. 

So, to recap, below are some advantages to registration:

•       Proof of ownership

•       Trademark infringement protection

•       Exclusive right to use throughout Canada for 15/10 years

•       Protect against “confusing” use

While those are the advantages of registering your trademark, we have to look at what that means for your business. A trademark, as intellectual property, is property of your business and thus, it is an asset. It is an intangible asset, but for many businesses, it may be their most valuable asset because it can embody your reputation and all of the good will you have built up in your business. 

For example, what would that LouisVuitton man purse I’m coveting be really worth if you were to all of a sudden strip away the Louis Vuitton trademark from it? It would likely sell for significantly less than the listed $3,250 price tag. 

So brands can be worth big money. While it may be hard to put a dollar value on your brand, ask yourself: how much would it cost me in business and how much would I have to spend to rebrand if someone were to all of a sudden tell me that I could not use my trademark? A registered trademark would go a long way in protecting your brand and, therefore, real value in your business. 

The drawback to registering your trademark is that it can be expensive. While the government fee is just $250 for filing an application plus the $200 registration fee at the end, if you hire a trademark lawyer or trademark agent to do it for you correctly, then your costs from start to finish can look more like $1500 including all fees. The reason why we money-grubbing trademark lawyers or agents charge so much is because we provide the advice and service to make sure your application is drafted properly giving you as broad of protection as possible. You also pay us to “prosecute” the application through the entire process, which can take 12 to 20 months for a relatively problem-free application to be fully registered. Trademark registration is a process because the rights granted are powerful, so the trademark lawyer or agent pushes your application through examination at the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and against any potential opposition. 

In the end, trademark registration gives you powerful rights under the law to protect a valuable asset of your business. It will be up to you to weigh whether filing for a trademark registration of your name, slogan or logo will be worth the money to gain those rights only available to registered trademark owners.

Thank you Gregory for providing these great insights for consideration on this important topic of trademarks and intellectual property. 

What's been your experience with trademarks and/or protecting your brand? We invite your comments and helpful suggestions for our audience, and please share this post with those in your circle of contacts!

* In Closing:  Has your BUSINESS PLAN taken the potential value of your brand, trademark, and/or other intellectual property into consideration? 

Pro-Vision Solutions Inc. has a number of helpful ways to add this into your BUSINESS PLAN! 

  CLICK HERE for more information and details!

"Thanks ...I Appreciate That!"

I truly appreciate the input and insights that so many of my friends, peers and colleagues have provided over the years. 

It's their willing spirit of collaboration and cooperation that has allowed for the free sharing of a greater depth of wisdom with those in my circle of contacts. They have demonstrated as I've often said, ‘that there’s more to be gained by working together than can be achieved on our own.’ 

Lynn Fraser

Appreciation is something that each of us values receiving, but for whatever reason, we may overlook golden opportunities to express it in the workplace. Sharing expressions of appreciation are an important aspect of 'Organizational Culture' which according to BusinessDictionary.com are “the values and behaviors that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of an organization.”

In future posts, I plan to share some of the wisdom that others have passed along on their entrepreneurial journey.

In this post, allow me to introduce my friend Lynn Fraser with Balance Your World Training & Coaching (www.lynnfraser.ca). 

Thank you Lynn for sharing a few of the things you've seen and learned with respect to showing appreciation in the workplace. 

A little appreciation goes a long way

I have a life-long friend who is a dedicated, talented and experienced school teacher.  Cassandra* (name changed) has taught for over two decades at the same school.  She shows up prepared every day to go the extra mile for her students.  She prepares diligently each new term, has rarely missed a day and books personal appointments after school hours.  Her specialized training in art and language, as well as her ability to quickly learn and teach new core subject curriculum makes her hard to replace. 

You would think that she would be greatly appreciated by her supervisor.  Yet the current principal surprised her staff with changes mid-school term to move students and teachers around that have caused additional workload and stress for all with little apparent benefit to more than a few.  Compliments are few and far between.  Trust and morale are at a low ebb.

My friend is not feeling valued or appreciated for her dedication to her profession and students, and she is seriously considering moving schools next school year.  What a loss for those learners, parents & school division.  Yet, it is an avoidable one with a relatively simple solution.

The Power of Gratitude

Showing appreciation – tapping into the power of gratitude – is an overlooked yet critical piece to your success in business and life.  I see this breakdown so often with my coaching clients in all lines of work – managers of family-owned businesses, attorneys, accountants.  I’ve listened individually to an owner and her manager complain about how the other has not appreciated her efforts for years.  Yet when the owner needed a reference letter for a business award nomination, she was so grateful when her supervisor went out of her way – while on holidays – to tell the committee how much she admired and respected her boss.  It’s an all-too-common story.

“Next to physical survival, the greatest need of a human being is… to be affirmed, to be validated, to be appreciated.” 

- Stephen R Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Use the SAR formula

According to the Oxford Canadian Dictionary, Recognition encompasses acknowledgement of a service, achievement, ability, etc..; appreciation, acclaim.  To provide specific recognition, you need to describe what the staff person did that you appreciated and would like to see repeated.  Be specific to an event and what action the person took to get the positive results you are recognizing her for.  Use her name. Be timely with your appreciation. 

Situation: Describe the stressor or challenge the employee faced

Action: Identify what the person did to address the challenge

Results: Describe what happened as a result of the action taken and how this relates to the success of the person, others and the organization.

I’ve seen this strategy work well with high achievers who tell me, “Maybe others need praise for doing their job well but I don’t.”  I’ve watched the transformation of a talented young manager who comes to work happier with the positive feedback and support from her coach and owners.  

Giving specific recognition even allows you to praise an underachieving employee for a small thing he does well.  A general “great job” would be glossing things over.  [Instead, you could say, “Thanks for carrying the glass shelf to the customer’s car without her asking.  I sincerely appreciate you demonstrating our company value of Exceptional Service.”  Sometimes, those words of appreciation can motivate additional improvement.

High-Value, Low-Cost Strategies

Although formal service awards are common in companies, I find the simple, low-cost and informal ways of showing appreciation work best.  A personal thank you note is rare and really gets noticed these days, especially if it arrives by snail mail.  One of the best ways I know is to spend quality time with an employee.  It may be as simple as sitting down with a cup of coffee, asking questions and listening to their thoughts, ideas and concerns. 

Here are a few other ideas: 

Taking him out for lunch or a walk.

A gift of a movie gift certificate, favourite candy, pen, candle or a selection of favourite music on a CD or USB stick.  

Keep in mind that recognition needs to be equal to the size of the accomplishment.  An e-mail or post it note that says, “Thanks so much for catching that error on the XYZ customer order” is fine for smaller efforts.  

If someone goes beyond expectations & stays overtime to get the job done, a bigger form of appreciation is warranted.  That’s when spending quality time really demonstrates how much you care.

One thing you know for sure is what comes around goes around.  In Alberta’s boom or bust economy, it’s tempting to pop off a brief thanks in an e-mail and get on to the next task.  Instead, choose one employee this week to show your appreciation in one of the above high-value, low-cost ways.  It’s never too late to begin, and you may be surprised at how your life, your bottom line and your relationships improve.  

Here are valuable resources:

Book: “Thanks! Great Job! Improve Retention, Boost Morale and Increase Engagement with High-Value, Low-Cost Staff Recognition” by Nelson Scott.

Online:  Check out www.GREATstaffrecognition.com for recognition resources and forms.  Read the Blog post, “Pay attention to me!”

Lynn Fraser with Balance Your World Training & Coaching is an enlightening speaker and a wholehearted coach.  She coaches and mentors individuals who want to be better leaders as well as live balanced lives.  Her consulting focuses on working with business managers and their teams to create a system for sustainable results.  Visit her website at www.lynnfraser.ca.  


What's been your experience? Please add your comments and helpful suggestions for our audience, and share this post with those in your circle of contacts!

* In Closing:  Has your BUSINESS PLAN taken your Organizational Culture into consideration? 

Pro-Vision Solutions Inc. has a number of helpful ways to include this in your BUSINESS PLAN! 

Simply CLICK HERE for more information and details!

Negotiating a Better Lease

• Free Rent?  

• Tenant Allowances?

Can these be included in a lease agreement? 

What can be negotiated with a landlord?

With the challenges faced by businesses today, it makes sense to carefully evaluate every expense. How much more does that process need to be applied against some of the largest expenditures a business will face - those related to their business location!

We've always encouraged our business clients to engage the services of experienced professionals to assist them with aspects of business where the professionals can add tremendous value.

Pro-Vision Solutions Inc. is very pleased to share the following tips and suggestions from The Lease Coach, and look forward to future contributions from them for our audience. Thank you once again Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield for sharing these very helpful insights with our Business Success audience!

Dale Willerton

Jeff Grandfield

Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies

Commercial Leasing Tips for Commercial Tenants

By: Jeff Grandfield – The Lease Coach 

For many business-owners, negotiating a good lease or lease renewal against an experienced agent or landlord can be a challenge. While an entrepreneur focuses on marketing and managing, savvy real estate agents and brokers are specialized sales people. Their job is to sell tenants on leasing their location at the highest possible rental rate. 

As explained in our new book, Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (co-written with my colleague, Dale Willerton), tenants may go through the leasing process only two or three times in their entire lifetime – yet they have to negotiate against seasoned professionals who negotiate leases every day for a living. Negotiating appropriate leasing terms is vital for an entrepreneur as the amount of rent he pays will directly affect the business’ financial bottom line.

Whether you are leasing a new location for the first time or negotiating a lease renewal for your business, these are some money-saving tips for tenants:

Negotiating for the Free Rent: The most free rent The Lease Coach has negotiated for a tenant was the first four years free on a 10-year lease term. In some cases, the landlord is in such a strong position that free rent is hard to get. The longer the space has been vacant, the stronger your negotiating position. If the agent won’t adjust or increase the free rent on your Offer to Lease, do it yourself (in pen) as a counteroffer.

Maximize the Tenant Allowance: Yes, it is possible to receive a portion or even all the tenant allowance money that you require to build out your space. It boils down to the net effective rental rate which means the landlord may be willing to provide as much tenant allowance as you want, provided the rent increases accordingly (effectively, the landlord will become your banker and “loan” you the money required). Some tenants can afford to pay a higher rent, but want to minimize start-up costs. The more convincingly The Lease Coach can demonstrate why you need the money or what other landlords are prepared to offer, the better chance you have of receiving what you are looking for. We ask for more tenant allowance than you need as landlords will likely counteroffer.

Go Slow for a Better Deal: Tenants often rush a lease deal and leave valuable incentives or inducements on the table. If you have the time to work with, we recommend that you take it. Often, we get tenants more free rent, more tenant allowance or even a lower rental rate just by refusing to sign on the dotted line too quickly. If the landlord or agent is anxious to close the deal, you can use stalling tactics to better your position.

For a copy of our free CD, Leasing Do’s & Don’ts for Commercial Tenants, please e-mail your request to DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com.

Jeff Grandfield and Dale Willerton - The Lease Coach are Commercial Lease Consultants who work exclusively for tenants. Jeff and Dale are professional speakers and co-authors of Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (Wiley, 2013). Got a leasing question? Need help with your new lease or renewal? Call 1-800-738-9202, e-mail DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com  or JeffGrandfield@TheLeaseCoach.com or visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com.

What's been your experience? Please add your comments and helpful suggestions for our audience, and share this post with those in your circle of contacts!



* In Closing:  Has your BUSINESS PLAN taken your future business growth requirements into consideration? 

Pro-Vision Solutions Inc. has a number of helpful ways to add this into your BUSINESS PLAN! 

Simply CLICK for more information and details!

Morinville and District Chamber of Commerce Presentation

March 2015 has proven to be a very busy month!  In the first week I had a wonderful opportunity to speak with members of the Morinville and District Chamber of Commerce at their monthly luncheon. For those not familiar with the community, Morinville is located just a little to the northwest of Edmonton. Over the years, I’ve developed great working relationships with many in the Town of Morinville, as well as within Sturgeon County.

With respect to the luncheon, I must say that the warm welcome provided by Chamber President, Simon Boersma, Chamber staff, and attendees was greatly appreciated. There was a terrific group of business people who came to the event, and I trust that we were able to add something of value to their growth and development.

Photojournalist Grant Cree kindly provided a copy of the article he wrote for the Morinville Free Press (March 10, 2015; Page 7). Thank you Grant for allowing us to share this with our viewers, which we’ve captured in the image in this post.

Following the luncheon, Simon Boersma provided these kind comments:  

“Thanks for coming out to our Morinville & District Chamber luncheon last Wednesday, a great time indeed with lots of information. The information presented was concise and your presentation was well presented with both PowerPoint and with hand out information. A record crowd came out to hear Jim speak and the information was well received by all attendees.”

Thank you Simon – it was a pleasure to be with your members at this event, and with the many others who attended from the business community.

BTW – a number of the attendees asked for more information regarding the “Business Planning Services” offered by Pro-Vision Solutions Inc. For those who may be interested, details can be found on our “Business Success BLOG”.
    * Here is a short URL that will take you to the appropriate page: http://goo.gl/KRTXUY





Here is the article and photo provided by Grant Cree:

Commercial Leases & Renewals Tips - The First Offer ...

Every business requires a location from which they'll operate. Many start from a home base and move into larger space when the residential location no longer meets their needs. Have you completed a detailed assessment of your needs prior to searching for the ideal location and have you allowed yourself enough time to avoid being pressured into making a hasty decision? How prepared are you to negotiate the terms of the lease  on that new location? 

Here are a few things that the experienced professionals with The Lease Coach have provided for your consideration as you face the prospect of relocating your business. Thank you Dale and Jeff for providing the following tips for our audience.


 
Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies

 

Commercial Leasing Tips for Commercial Tenants

By: Jeff Grandfield – The Lease Coach

For many business-owners, negotiating a good lease or lease renewal against an experienced agent or landlord can be a challenge. While an entrepreneur focuses on marketing and managing, savvy real estate agents and brokers are specialized sales people. Their job is to sell tenants on leasing their location at the highest possible rental rate.

As explained in our new book, Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (co-written with my colleague, Dale Willerton), tenants may go through the leasing process only two or three times in their entire lifetime – yet they have to negotiate against seasoned professionals who negotiate leases every day for a living. Negotiating appropriate leasing terms is vital for an entrepreneur as the amount of rent he pays will directly affect the business’ financial bottom line.

Whether you are leasing a new location for the first time or negotiating a lease renewal for your business, these are some money-saving tips for tenants:

Never Just Accept the First Offer: Even if an Offer seems reasonable or you have no idea of what to negotiate for, never accept the leasing agent’s or landlord’s first offer. More often than not, the first offer or rental rate is inflated. Many agents use a strategy of starting negotiations at a higher rate that allows them to give in slightly. When The Lease Coach negotiates for tenants, we frequently complete lease agreements 15 to 25% less than the agent’s opening offer. In one case, we negotiated for the asking rate to be reduced from $8.00/psf to under $3.00/psf. The majority of agents / landlords build room to maneuver into the Offer.

Hiring a Lawyer or an Accountant: Very few lawyers or accountants possess commercial real estate business savvy or practical experience. Before hiring either, check their websites and be sure they specialize in commercial real estate. Many tenants are hiring professional Lease Consultants for a more comprehensive, hands-on approach especially when negotiating and/or consulting work is required. It is often more important to review the lease document from a negotiating position, rather than from a legal position. Remember, the legality of the lease document is rarely in question.

For a copy of our free CD, Leasing Do’s & Don’ts for Commercial Tenants, please e-mail your request to DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com.

Jeff Grandfield and Dale Willerton - The Lease Coach are Commercial Lease Consultants who work exclusively for tenants. Jeff and Dale are professional speakers and co-authors of Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals For Dummies (Wiley, 2013). Got a leasing question? Need help with your new lease or renewal? Call 1-800-738-9202, e-mail DaleWillerton@TheLeaseCoach.com  or JeffGrandfield@TheLeaseCoach.com or visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com.

We'd be pleased to have your comments, tips and suggestions to further help our audience of entrepreneurs?


* Please let us know if we can help you as you develop your business plan and grow your business.

Pro-Vision Solutions Inc. would be more than happy to assist  you with that!