That advice from a landlord about triple net leases came back to bite me

Last year I was looking at a small retail space on Michigan Ave and the landlord told me triple net leases are no big deal, just a few hundred extra per month for taxes and insurance. I went with it because the base rent was cheap. Six months in the roof needed replacing and I got stuck with a $12,000 bill because there was no cap on maintenance costs in the lease. My buddy who does commercial leasing told me I should have asked for a hard cap on repairs or gone with a gross lease instead. Anyone else get burned by a landlord brushing off the fine print in a NNN lease?

3 comments

3 Comments

emmag223d ago

Did you actually read the lease before you signed it, or did you just take his word for it? NNN leases are pretty standard for retail and the roof maintenance thing is usually right there in black and white.

carter.laura22h ago

Nodding along because I've seen tenants try to fight roof repairs in court and the judge just points at the NNN clause every single time. It's literally in the first page of most commercial leases, not even hidden in fine print.

eva_adams683d ago

Wait, are we actually surprised that someone who can be convinced to sign a document without reading it also missed the part where they agreed to pay for roof repairs? I've sat through enough lease signings to know that if the ink is still wet and you're taking their word for it over the printed page, you're basically asking for it. The NNN leases I've seen literally spell out who fixes what in a chart, with little checkmarks and everything. Last time I checked, a "triple net" lease isn't some secret handshake, it's just a fancy way of saying you pay for everything except the air. But I guess some people learn the hard way that "I promise" doesn't hold up against "it says right here in paragraph 7.

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