Feature

Get 12 Lease Protections When Granting Tenant Improvement Allowances

September 17, 2019    
Offering tenant improvement allowances (TIAs) is a great way to attract and retain small and new businesses that can’t afford the renovations they need to open shop. But it can also backfire if the tenant defaults before moving in or generating the revenues necessary to pay you back. TIAs...
Related Tools: Establish Conditions for Financing Tenant Improvements
Traps to Avoid

Don't Assume Personal Guaranties Continue After the Lease Is Renewed

September 17, 2019    
When you renew a lease that includes a guaranty from the tenant’s business principal or another third party, you might assume that the guaranty will automatically continue into the renewal term. But if you don’t get the guarantor to sign off on the renewal lease, you may be unable to...
Pop Quiz

Can Tenant in Default Avoid Attorney Fees by Suing Landlord First?

September 17, 2019    
Situation: A landlord sends a default notice and is preparing to evict a spa tenant that owes nearly $53,000 in unpaid rent. But the tenant beats the landlord to the punch by filing its own lawsuit asking the court to enjoin the landlord from terminating the lease. The tenant’s complaint...
Owner Wins

Must Tenant Pay Rent If Improvements Aren't Done Yet?

September 17, 2019    
   What Happened    A new shopping center lease says that a restaurant tenant doesn’t have to pay rent until the landlord “delivers possession of the premises.” Unfortunately, the lease doesn’t define the phrase.
Owner Loses

Listing Wrong Company Name Doesn't Defeat Tenant’s Renewal Notice

September 17, 2019    
What Happened: In seeking to exercise its five-year lease renewal option, retail tenant Intermix did just about everything right. The notice was timely; it was in proper written form; and it clearly stated Intermix’s intent to renew. But the officer who executed the option on Intermix’s...
Owner Wins

Landlord Not to Blame for Tenant's Garbage Dumping Woes

September 17, 2019    
 What Happened:  After years of letting a pizzeria dump its trash in its alley, a neighboring property owner said no more and locked the gateway. At first, the pizzeria put the trash out front, but after local officials complained, it stored the trash inside. The resulting rat infestation...
Feature

Beyond the Boilerplate: How to Negotiate the Force Majeure Clause

August 20, 2019    
It’s among the least appreciated parts of the lease. But while rent, renewal, and other business terms command most of the attention, the so-called force majeure clause takes center stage when disasters occur. It’s at that point that both landlords and tenants recognize the importance...
Related Tools: Provide Relief from Lease Duties if Force Majeure Events Prevent Performance
Pop Quiz

Does Lease Termination Let Rent Guarantor Off the Hook?

August 20, 2019    
SITUATION: A tenant leases restaurant space with its principal acting as guarantor. Under the guaranty agreement, the landlord is allowed to show the tenant leniency and make lease modifications, extensions, or amendments with the tenant without notifying the guarantor.
Owner Wins

Disposing of Tenant Property After Lawful Eviction Isn't Conversion

August 20, 2019    
What Happened: When the tenant and surety didn’t show up for the eviction proceeding, the court awarded the landlord default judgment. The landlord then sent the tenant and surety notice to collect their personal property and disposed of the stuff when they didn’t respond after seven...
Owner Wins

Lease Bars Tenant's Claims for Lost Profits During Renovation Work

August 20, 2019    
Section 7: [T]here shall be no allowance to Tenant for a diminution in rental value, and no liability on part of Landlord by reason of inconvenience, annoyance or injury to person(s), property or business arising from the making of any repairs, alterations, additions or improvements in or to any...
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