Commercial Real Estate Capability

Commercial Leasing

Commercial lease transactions define the economic and operational terms of a property for years or decades. Lease documentation addresses rent structure, permitted use, tenant improvements, maintenance and operating expense obligations, renewal options, assignment and subletting rights, and default and remedies provisions.

The firm advises landlords and tenants in the negotiation and documentation of commercial leases across office, retail, industrial, and mixed-use properties. This practice handles both sides of lease transactions and advises on single-property and portfolio leasing programs, including anchor and multi-tenant retail, multi-floor office, industrial and logistics facilities, and ground lease structures.

Representation Includes

  • Office, retail, industrial, and mixed-use lease negotiation and documentation
  • Ground leases and build-to-suit lease structures
  • Landlord representation on multi-tenant and anchor properties
  • Tenant representation on single-location and portfolio transactions
  • Subleases, lease assignments, and landlord consent documentation
  • Lease terminations, modifications, extensions, and renewals
  • Tenant improvement and construction documentation
  • Estoppel certificates, SNDAs, and lender coordination

Transaction Considerations

Commercial lease negotiations often involve competing economic and operational interests that must be balanced against market conditions and the practical requirements of each party. The firm advises on the full range of lease provisions — from rent structure and improvement allowances to assignment rights, default remedies, and lender subordination requirements — and works efficiently with landlords’ and tenants’ business teams to close leases on schedule.

Issues That Recur in Leasing Transactions

  • Operating expenses and CAM. Common-area-maintenance and operating-expense provisions — the expense base, exclusions, caps, gross-ups, and audit rights — determine how much of a building's operating cost each tenant bears, and are among the most negotiated terms in office and retail leases.
  • Estoppel certificates. Tenant and landlord estoppel certificates confirm the lease terms and the absence of defaults for lenders and purchasers; their required form is coordinated with financing and sale timing.
  • Subordination, non-disturbance, and attornment. SNDA agreements set the relationship between the lease and the landlord's financing — subordinating the lease to the mortgage while protecting the tenant's possession on a foreclosure.
  • Exclusive use and co-tenancy. Exclusive-use, prohibited-use, and co-tenancy provisions in retail leases protect a tenant's business while constraining how the landlord leases the balance of the property.
  • Assignment and subletting. Assignment, subletting, change-of-control, and recapture provisions govern a tenant's ability to transfer the lease and the landlord's consent and recapture rights.
  • Tenant improvement allowances. Improvement-allowance, build-out, and delivery-condition terms allocate the cost and risk of tenant improvements and set the conditions for disbursing the allowance.

Contact Snow LLP

To discuss a commercial real estate matter, contact Snow LLP directly.

Contact Snow LLP