After months of contemplation, you assembled the right team of investors for an initial plunge into commercial real estate investment. While you think you have a firm understanding of the property and its location, you must realize that your education in commercial real estate investment has just begun.
Protecting yourself, your team of investors and your investment property remain a priority. And there are so many things you will need to do besides recruiting companies to lease space from your building. This is why the guidance of a skilled real estate attorney is essential.
Understanding your obligations
Working with an attorney is a good idea as well as a good investment. An attorney provides direction, while covering all legal aspects related to commercial real estate investments. Here are some of the ways an attorney helps:
- Explaining your obligations to your tenants.
- Describing the fine and complicated details of commercial leases.
- Ensuring that lease agreements are current and up-to-date.
- Determining length of leases. Start-up companies may not be around that long, either outgrowing their spaces or failing. This is an example of when a short-term lease is realistic.
- Leading and coaching you in lease negotiations, ensuring that prospective tenants have a firm understanding of rent agreements.
- Establishing when rent increases take place and the amount they increase.
- Assembling a plan for resolving disputes. This may include mediation and arbitration.
- Helping tenants understand their responsibilities related to maintenance repair issues.
Managing your commercial properties is not easy and takes a great amount of work and research. Being successful relies on many factors. And that includes securing valuable advice from a knowledgeable and reliable attorney.
