Hire a Real Estate Lawyer Before Negotiating a Commercial Lease
Negotiating a commercial lease is one of the biggest deals that you will be involved in as a business owner, and you may end up spending hundreds of thousands of dollars over the life of the lease. Because of the fact that there is so much money involved, you will want to work with a Fort Lauderdale commercial real estate attorney before you start negotiating with the landlord. Even if you are an experienced negotiator there are dozens of pitfalls that you need to avoid, and you may not be aware of them.
Waiting too long to hire an attorney is often a mistake
Some take a minimalist approach and wait until lease negotiations are completed or almost completed before hiring an attorney. In some cases this can work, but in many cases it doesn’t. By the time you have finished negotiations, you may have already verbally agreed to many of the terms of the contract, which means that will be difficult to change them. When you have an attorney with you at the beginning, you won’t get too deep into negotiations and commit to something that is unfavorable to you.
Hire an attorney early on in the process
When you hire a Fort Lauderdale commercial real estate lawyer earlier in the process, you can negotiate everything that you want before the closing. Having professional expertise from the beginning is always helpful because your lawyer can include clauses that protect you and also bargain for better incentives. For instance, your lawyer may be able to negotiate a better deal for the space, concessions such as moving expense reimbursement, and most importantly protect your legal interests if something goes wrong with the deal in the future.
It is well worth the cost, considering the size of many commercial deals
Many commercial real estate leases can result in a business owner spending hundreds of thousands of dollars over the term of the lease. The cost to hire an attorney is minute in comparison, and the potential money that your lawyer can save you on your lease is substantial. If your lawyer is able to prevent just one legal battle in the future, or negotiates just one better term for your lease agreement, it can end up saving you thousands of dollars. It makes perfect sense for any business owner to hire an attorney at the very start of commercial lease negotiations to get the most favorable deal possible.
If you are in the process of negotiating a commercial lease deal, call Leah Mayersohn at Schecter Law today for a free consultation.
