Guides for the paperwork
side of a lease deal
How to read a redline round without losing the evening, what each operating expense structure actually costs, and how to keep decisions clear for either side of the transaction. Start with a topic or use a worksheet on your next deal.
Lease Guide
Lease Guide
Tenant Estoppel Review: Match the Lease, Amendments and Ledger
A practical tenant estoppel review checklist for reconciling signed amendments, rent records, unfinished work and exceptions before signature.
·4 min read
Lease Guide
Lease insurance review: match the clause to the policy documents
A review checklist for commercial lease insurance requirements, certificates and endorsements, with a hypothetical mismatch and a copyable exception log.
·4 min read
Lease Guide
CPI rent increases: check the clause before using the headline number
A worked CPI rent example and redline checklist covering the index, comparison months, base rent, floors, caps and notice requirements.
·4 min read
Lease Guide
Commercial lease abstract template: fields, sources, and a worked example
Build a lease abstract with source references, rent schedules, deadlines, and amendment history. Includes a free editable worksheet and sample entry.
·4 min read
Lease Guide
Lease commencement vs. rent commencement: build the right timeline
Separate possession, lease commencement, rent commencement, and free rent. Use an illustrative timeline to spot costly date and trigger mismatches.
·3 min read
Lease Guide
Commercial lease renewal option: a notice and decision checklist
Build a renewal-option calendar with notice windows, delivery evidence, rent-setting steps, and assigned owners. Includes a practical review workflow.
·3 min read
Lease Guide
Commercial lease review checklist: 40 items before you sign
A structured checklist for reviewing a commercial lease draft, organized by what it costs you: economics, exit rights, credit support and operating terms.
·9 min read
LOI Guide
LOI Guide
LOI vs. lease: a checklist for finding terms that changed
Compare a commercial lease with its LOI using four clear statuses. Work through a TI allowance example and copy a term-by-term review worksheet.
·4 min read
LOI Guide
How to write a letter of intent for a commercial lease
What belongs in a commercial lease LOI, how to handle the binding and non binding split, and the terms that are nearly impossible to win back later.
·8 min read
Redline Strategy
Redline Strategy
Commercial lease client update: a template that makes the next decision clear
Build a useful lease update with the source clause, changed business term, decision needed and responsible person. Includes a fictional example and free builder.
·5 min read
Redline Strategy
Word Compare vs. lease review software: what does a broker actually need?
Use Word for a document comparison; evaluate a lease workflow when you need explanations, an issue history and client responses. A practical buying checklist.
·5 min read
Redline Strategy
Commercial lease negotiation issue log: a template for every round
Keep lease negotiations moving with a reusable issue log, clear statuses, evidence references, decision owners, and a concise client update format.
·4 min read
Redline Strategy
Final commercial lease signing checklist: verify the execution set
Verify a commercial lease execution set against the last reviewed draft, resolved issues, exhibits, business terms, and the post-signing handoff.
·4 min read
Redline Strategy
AI commercial lease review: how to verify the output
Evaluate AI lease review using source quotations, missing-term handling, document completeness, and a practical test case instead of unsupported scores.
·4 min read
Redline Strategy
How to read a commercial lease redline without losing the evening
A working method for reading a redline round: separate the noise from the money, check the four articles that change quietly, and track what is still open.
·8 min read
Redline Strategy
How to compare two versions of a lease in Word, and where it fails
How to run Word's Compare on two lease drafts, why the output is noisier than it should be, and the four failures you still have to check by hand.
·7 min read
NNN & CAM
NNN & CAM
How to calculate effective rent on a commercial lease
Compare commercial lease offers with a worked effective-rent calculation, including free rent, escalations, and costs the headline figure leaves out.
·4 min read
NNN & CAM
Cumulative vs. non-cumulative CAM caps: a worked comparison
See how two illustrative CAM cap formulas produce different expense ceilings. Check the base, excluded costs, and carry-forward language in your lease.
·4 min read
NNN & CAM
NNN vs gross lease: what each structure actually costs a tenant
Triple net, modified gross and full service leases move the same costs around differently. How to compare offers across structures and what to check in each.
·8 min read
NNN & CAM
How to review a CAM reconciliation statement before the clock runs out
The annual CAM statement arrives with a short dispute window and a long list of charges. What to check, in what order, and what usually turns out wrong.
·7 min read
Tenant Playbook
Tenant Playbook
Tenant improvement allowance: check the work letter before budgeting
Calculate a TI allowance, compare reimbursement timing, and review work-letter requirements before relying on the amount in your build-out budget.
·4 min read
Tenant Playbook
Commercial lease personal guaranty: a business review checklist
Review the scope, duration, limits, and release conditions of a commercial lease guaranty, with an illustrative exposure example and counsel questions.
·3 min read
Tenant Playbook
Assignment vs. sublease: what to compare in a commercial lease
Compare assignment and subleasing through a practical document review: consent, remaining obligations, permitted use, costs, and transfer questions.
·3 min read
Tenant Playbook
Commercial lease negotiation for tenants: where the leverage actually is
Which lease terms a tenant can realistically move, which are worth trading away, and how leverage changes between the LOI and round four.
·8 min read
Landlord Playbook
Landlord Playbook
A landlord broker’s lease redline workflow: from tenant comments to owner decisions
Organize a tenant’s returned lease into owner decisions, counsel questions and unresolved points. A practical workflow with a fictional issue example.
·5 min read
Landlord Playbook
A landlord's guide to reviewing a tenant redline
Which tenant markups are routine, which quietly transfer risk, and how to respond without giving away the provisions your lender cares about.
·7 min read
Put the workflow to work on your next lease.
Put your next round through CRE Redline and see every change, ranked by what it moves. Round 1 of every deal is free.