This help desk is a free resource intended for discussion purposes only. Neither BOMA, its chapters, affiliates, or Extreme Measures Inc.® are responsible for the information, comments or opinions expressed herein. For complete information, refer to the official publications of the standards themselves.
Hi, I gone through 2 different landlord offer with 2 different size of the same ground floor retail unit I want to lease. The commercial office building has been sold to the new landlord, here is the issue.
Xlandlord offer 685sq but new landlord offer 808sq, since it is a office building but I lease the retail unit for restaurant purpose, why there is a different? In addition, how could I convince new landlord to lower sqft to 685sq? thax
Ian
Hi Ian,
Without knowing the origin of these figures, it's a difficult question to answer.
Many retail leases are based on net square footage. This is particularly true of shopping malls, plazas and big box retail buildings.
Office buildings on the other hand, are often measured to one of the BOMA office standards. These standards assign a proportionate share of common area to every occupancy, regardless of whether they are retail or office. This may be the reason for the larger area figure.
Make sure you get area verification documents from the landlord (summary of areas, floor plans, area certificate etc) so that you can confirm what you are getting into.
As for convincing your landlord to lower the area? This is not our expertise. Consult your broker or lawyer.