Case Studies

VCRE works hard to apply the Army values of Leadership, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, and Personal Courage to its occupier partners. As servant leaders, long-term partnerships with our tenant teammates are the top priority.

Some examples of long-term partnerships include:

Operating Expenses and Tenant Improvements are the most common areas landlords use as additional profit centers.

Don’t be a victim. Hire a conflict-free expert.

Operating Expense Savings

Numerous hours are spent negotiating the operating expense sections of a lease. Despite detailed lease language that might include strong language to protect the tenant (such as caps on controllable operating expenses and management fees, operating expense exclusions, and how real estate tax refunds are applied), landlords often overcharge tenants for operating expenses. Leases are individualized, complex, and sometimes honest mistakes are made. On the other hand, some landlords intentionally overcharge operating expenses for an additional profit center.

Review your operating expenses annually. Regardless of how well a lease is written for a tenant, the onus is on the occupier to review and identify billing errors.

Level the playing field. Hire a conflict-free expert to review your operating expenses.

Tenant Improvements

Whether a landlord is performing a tenant’s required improvements to a space or the tenant hires a general contractor and controls the work, landlords often use “tenant improvements” as an additional profit center.

Even if a tenant negotiates overhead and profit caps, construction management fees, and an open book bid process, landlords can still profit in ways excluded with a strong lease. These methods might include not providing transparency by increasing line item expenses before applying any applicable fees, applying fees to inapplicable areas, and hiding fees through “general conditions.”

Level the playing field. Hire a conflict-free expert to review and monitor your tenant improvements.