Negotiating Commercial Leases & Renewals FOR DUMMIES
For many healthcare tenants, negotiating a good lease or lease renewal against an experienced agent or landlord can be a challenge. While a doctor focuses on proper patient care, 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, 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 a doctor as the amount of rent he pays will directly affect the practice’s financial bottom line.
Whether you are leasing a new location for the first time or negotiating a lease renewal for your practice, these are some money-saving tips for healthcare tenants:
Ask the Right Questions: Who really owns the property – a local family or a distant pension fund? Who were the last two tenants to move in – and out of the property? Which tenants are not renewing their leases? Who is leasing month-to-month? Is the property currently for sale or expected to go on the market soon? Asking questions like these will help level the negotiating field as most leasing agents volunteer only one-sided information. If the leasing agent claims that he/she doesn’t know, press for details.
Location, Location, Location: For most general physicians, selecting the right property is critical enough, but leasing the right location within that building can be even more important to your success. If you are a specialist, you may be more likely to lease space in an office where you will see referred patients and your practice does not need to be so visible to produce business. Proper site selection takes time and objective consideration. Remember, the most difficult part of any lease agreement to change after opening is your physical location.
For a copy of our free CD, Leasing Do’s & Don’ts for Commercial Tenants, please e-mail request to [email protected].
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 [email protected] or [email protected] or visit www.TheLeaseCoach.com.
