As a business owner, a commercial lease will rank as one of – if not the – top expenses in your business owning journey. Having that brick-and-mortar shop can give you a lot of benefits, but at the same time, walking into that first lease can bring a lot of stress as well.
Before you go signing your first commercial lease, you should know as much about them as possible. This can help prevent you from making avoidable mistakes.
Lengths of commercial leases
Forbes takes a look at some of the most crucial things to know about commercial leases. First, note that commercial leases differ from private or personal leases in ways that can benefit you, along with ways that might work as a detriment against you.
First, commercial leases often have different lengths. You may find some that go on a month-by-month basis, but many also go on a yearly basis. You will also have more limitations compared to personal leases, as this building is not intended for living use. In other words, you cannot stay in the building 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Property responsibility
Next, you want to know who holds the responsibility for the property. For example, who will have to handle arranging for repairs if the heating system breaks? Who foots the financial bill? What happens if a customer gets injured on the property? Who will take responsibility for that?
Finally, know what is included in the lease. Does it cover parking for customers? Phone lines? Internet service? You want as much as possible, and you always want to go into a lease knowing exactly what you get.
