Should You Renegotiate Your Commercial Lease?

Did you think your commercial lease would be different? A commercial lease lawyer can often help tenants renegotiate commercial lease agreements. Renegotiating can add benefits to your lease, but the renegotiation process can be complicated and tricky.

Although commercial leases are binding legal contracts, renegotiations are always possible. You can sometimes change your rent amount, the lease term, or include other benefits. In the following circumstances, renegotiating your commercial lease may be the right step to take:

  1. If market changes affect your profits, consider a lease renegotiation that suits your business needs better.
  2. If your business goes under unexpectedly due to something like a natural disaster or a pandemic, you will need to renegotiate.
  3. If your landlord is not meeting the terms of your lease agreement, renegotiating your lease may improve your landlord’s ability to meet the lease’s terms.

Of course, not every frustration or inconvenience requires a lease renegotiation. Nevertheless, in many situations, renegotiating a commercial lease can benefit both a tenant and a landlord.

Why Should Your Landlord Renegotiate Your Commercial Lease?

Even if you don’t need to renegotiate your lease immediately, learning how to negotiate or renegotiate a commercial lease is essential for anyone who owns a business and rents commercial space for that business.

If your lease will soon be up for renewal, re-evaluate your lease agreement to ensure you are getting what you pay for. You may see several adjustments your landlord can make to the lease that will benefit your business.

Why should your landlord renegotiate your commercial lease agreement? Because landlords like to retain good tenants, this gives you some leverage for renegotiating. Every landlord wants to retain a responsible tenant.

What Can You Renegotiate?

Before you begin lease renegotiations, consult a commercial lease attorney and consider letting that attorney negotiate with your landlord on your behalf.

What can you renegotiate with your landlord? The benefits you may seek include rent reduction, rent abatement, and the right to sublease or to make significant changes to the property:

  1. You should seek a rent reduction if the property has deteriorated or sustained damage. If you maintain the property and pay the rent on time, you may be allowed to lower the rent amount because your landlord wants to keep you as a tenant.
  2. If your landlord hasn’t been making the necessary repairs and improvements, you may pursue rent abatement when you renegotiate. Rent abatement allows you to suspend your rent payments or pay less until the landlord makes the improvements.
  3. If your business is growing and needs more space, or if it is failing and you can no longer meet the original terms of your commercial lease, subleasing – that is, letting another party take over your current lease for the remainder of its term – may be your solution.

How Do You Renegotiate a Commercial Lease?

Your commercial lease attorney can help you prepare a formal renegotiation proposal. In that proposal, clearly state why you seek to renegotiate your lease. Consider including financial statements and a business plan.

Renegotiating commercial leases is challenging, especially when landlords are not persuaded that they will benefit. Here are some tips to help you in the process:

  1. Start early: Renegotiating a commercial lease takes some time, so begin the process – and consult a Marietta commercial lease lawyer – as soon as you know that renegotiating your commercial lease is necessary.
  2. Use the phone or meet face-to-face: Emails are impersonal and don‘t allow you to hear someone‘s tone of voice. Renegotiate your commercial lease in person or by telephone, and you can avoid the misunderstandings that often accompany emails and text messages.
  3. Stay positive: When you renegotiate your commercial lease, you must appear confident, organized, and professional. You want to establish a robust and long-term relationship with your landlord based on mutual respect.
  4. Be precise: Be clear about your goals, and have the necessary paperwork to achieve those goals prepared in advance.
  5. Learn about your alternatives: Looking into other options and sharing with your landlord what the competition offers may induce your landlord to make some compromises to meet your needs. Moreover, you may learn that you‘ll do better by finding a new location.
  6. Consider hiring an attorney: Commercial lease renegotiations are frequently quite complicated. If you are not an experienced and confident negotiator, a commercial lease attorney will help you get the best lease agreement with your landlord.

Have a Plan B

If your landlord rejects your proposals or refuses to renegotiate your commercial lease, you and your attorney should have a backup plan already prepared. Negotiations may be ongoing, and you may need some patience, but having a Plan B is well worth the effort.

If you have good reasons and you’ve done good research, renegotiating your commercial lease may benefit you for many years into the future. However, if the property you are currently leasing simply does not meet your needs, growing your business may require you to relocate.

Whether you stay and renegotiate or move and negotiate a new commercial lease, you will find the advice, insights, and services of a good commercial lease lawyer invaluable. But how can you locate an attorney in Georgia who will prioritize your business needs?

Meet the InPrime Legal Team

If you need help with a new commercial lease or a renegotiation of your current lease, an attorney at InPrime Legal can negotiate on your behalf or guide you step-by-step through the commercial lease negotiation process.

At InPrime Legal, we offer comprehensive legal services and representation for businesses. Our full-service legal team helps our clients with all aspects of business law. We’ve built a record of success and a reputation for extraordinary client service.

Contact InPrime Legal by calling 770-282-8967  to schedule a free legal strategy session with no obligation. Our attorneys will help you negotiate commercial lease terms that will help to grow your business and protect your long-term interests.