Plain-English lease guides for small tenants
Know your lease before you sign it. Short, practical guides to the terms small businesses run into most. General information, not legal advice.
CAM charges, explained for small tenants
A plain-English guide to common area maintenance (CAM) charges for small commercial tenants: what's included, common exclusions, caps, year-end reconciliations, and audit rights.
Read the guide →Exclusive use clauses: protecting your business from a competitor next door
A plain-English guide to exclusive use clauses for small retail and restaurant tenants: what they protect, how they are worded, common exceptions, and remedies if a landlord breaches.
Read the guide →Your first commercial lease: a checklist before you sign
A plain-English checklist for signing your first commercial lease as a small business: costs, term, use, repairs, guarantees, assignment, and the deadlines to calendar.
Read the guide →Gross vs. modified gross vs. NNN: which lease are you looking at?
Gross, modified gross, and triple net (NNN) commercial leases compared in plain English: who pays what, base years, expense stops, and how to compare quotes fairly.
Read the guide →Negotiating your commercial lease renewal
A plain-English guide to negotiating a commercial lease renewal as a small tenant: when to start, how renewal options work, where your leverage comes from, and what to ask for.
Read the guide →LOI vs. lease: what is binding, and why the LOI matters
Letter of intent vs. commercial lease in plain English: what an LOI is, which parts may be binding, what small tenants should include, and how the LOI shapes the final lease.
Read the guide →Triple net (NNN) leases, explained in plain English
Triple net (NNN) leases explained in plain English: what taxes, insurance, and CAM mean, how estimates and year-end true-ups work, and what to ask before you sign.
Read the guide →Personal guarantees on a commercial lease: what you are really signing
A plain-English guide to personal guarantees on commercial leases: what you're signing, common ways tenants limit exposure (caps, burn-offs, good-guy clauses), and questions to ask.
Read the guide →Have a clause you're not sure about?
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