Calculate your true total occupancy cost for a triple-net lease — base rent, CAM, taxes, insurance, and reimbursements. Find out what you're really paying.
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Enter the figures from the landlord's quote or LOI. All amounts are dollars per square foot per year unless noted otherwise.
Every line item in your lease was written by the landlord's lawyer. Here's what gets overlooked.
CAM is estimated each year and reconciled against actuals. If actuals exceed the estimate, you owe the difference — sometimes thousands of dollars in a single bill. Ask for a CAM cap (5% annual increase max) and the right to audit.
A new roof or HVAC system shouldn't hit your CAM bill — those are landlord capital expenses. But many leases let landlords pass through "capital expenses that reduce operating costs." Negotiate a strict exclusion or amortization over useful life.
In Illinois, property taxes get reassessed regularly and Cook County is brutal. If the building sells or gets reassessed during your lease, your tax pass-through can jump 20–40% overnight. Ask for a base year stop or a cap on year-over-year tax increases.
Most landlords ask for a personal guarantee on the full lease term. This can put your house on the line if your business fails. Negotiate a "good guy" guarantee (limited to time you actually occupy) or a burn-off after 24 months of on-time payments.
In a soft market, landlords routinely offer $20–$50/SF to build out your space — but only if you ask. They almost never volunteer it. Free rent (1–6 months) is also negotiable. These concessions can be worth six figures and dramatically lower your effective rate.
In commercial leasing, tenants don't pay broker fees — the landlord does. Having your own broker costs you nothing and gets you better terms, lower CAM, and a market check on the asking rent.
Request Tenant Rep →A calculator shows you the math. A tenant rep negotiates the lease. Send Jason your LOI or proposed lease and get a confidential market analysis — what's negotiable, what to push back on, and what concessions you should be asking for. Tenant representation is free — the landlord pays the commission.
NNN stands for "triple net" — the three Ns being property taxes, insurance, and common area maintenance (CAM). In a true NNN lease, the tenant pays base rent PLUS their pro-rata share of all three categories. This is different from a "gross lease" (landlord covers everything) or a "modified gross lease" (some categories included, others not). Always confirm in writing which lease type you're signing.
Because landlords advertise the base rent — the smallest, most attractive number — and bury everything else in pass-throughs. A "$15/SF" quoted rate often becomes $22–$26/SF effective once CAM, taxes, and insurance are added. This is why comparing properties on base rent alone is meaningless. Always compare total occupancy cost.
Yes, more than most tenants realize. You can negotiate annual caps (e.g., CAM increases capped at 5%), exclusions (no capital improvements, no marketing fees, no landlord legal fees), audit rights (you can review the books once per year), and base year stops (your tax pass-through is calculated against year-one taxes, so reassessments don't crush you). Whether you actually get these depends on the strength of the market and your leverage.
It varies by property type, location, and building age. As rough Chicagoland benchmarks: Retail strip centers run $3–$6/SF CAM. Industrial buildings run $1.50–$3/SF. Multi-tenant office can hit $7–$12/SF depending on amenities. If your CAM is significantly above these ranges, ask for a detailed line-item breakdown — there may be questionable charges built in.
For any lease above $50K total commitment, yes. Tenant representation is free for you — the landlord pays the broker commission as a standard part of the deal. A good tenant rep gets you better lease terms, identifies hidden costs, runs market comps, and negotiates concessions you wouldn't think to ask for. The math: if a tenant rep saves you even $1/SF on a 3,000 SF / 5-year lease, that's $15,000 in your pocket — at zero cost. Going without one is leaving money on the table.