Tips
Practical Tenant Tips
General guidance for business owners and executives — every deal is different, so treat this as a starting point, not a substitute for a direct conversation about your specific lease.
1. Start your renewal review 12-18 months out
Once you're inside six months of your expiration, relocating stops being a credible threat, and landlords know it. Starting early keeps your options open long enough to actually use them as leverage.
2. Negotiate how your renewal rent gets set, not just that you have one
A renewal option that resets to "fair market value" sounds fair until you're the one disputing what that number actually is. Define the mechanism up front, an independent appraisal process, a capped percentage increase, or a specific formula, so you're not negotiating from scratch under a landlord-friendly definition years from now.
3. Free rent and TI dollars are negotiated line items
Quoted rent is rarely the full picture. Rent abatement, tenant improvement allowances, and moving allowances are all flexible even when the base rate looks fixed, but only if you ask for them before signing the LOI.
4. Operating expenses can move your real cost more than base rent
CAM charges, expense stops, base year definitions, and gross-up clauses all affect what you actually pay. Two leases with identical headline rent can have very different total costs once these terms are compared.
5. Usable vs. rentable square footage changes your real cost
The rent you're quoted is usually based on rentable square footage, which includes a share of hallways, lobbies, and shared mechanical space, not just the space you actually occupy. That load factor can run from a few percent to well over 15%, so two spaces quoted at the same rate per square foot can cost meaningfully different amounts per employee.
6. Subleasing is a legitimate cost-recovery strategy
If you're carrying space you don't need, subleasing can offset that cost without breaking your lease. It requires landlord consent and the right clause in your original lease, so it's worth checking your rights before you assume it's not an option.
7. Right-size around actual usage, not the old headcount
Badge swipe data, utilization studies, and current headcount trends tell you more about how much space you need than the number you signed for years ago. Downsizing based on real data avoids both wasted rent and a cramped move later.
8. Negotiate your options at signing, not at expiration
Renewal options, expansion rights, and early termination clauses are cheap to negotiate before you sign and expensive, or impossible, to add later. Know what rights you already have in your current lease before you assume you need a whole new negotiation.
9. Get it in the LOI before the lease gets drafted
A Letter of Intent sets the terms attorneys draft from. Verbal promises about concessions, build-out, or timelines that aren't in the LOI tend to quietly disappear once the lease document shows up.
10. Compare total occupancy cost, not the headline rate
The "cheaper" option on paper can cost more once you factor in moving expenses, downtime, TI shortfalls, and annual escalations. Model the full cost over the lease term, not just year-one rent, before deciding.