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All signs point to the economy getting worse before it gets better. So, more than likely, you are going to have your fair share of tenant bankruptcies. Be prepared by negotiating certain bankruptcy protections with all your tenants.

U.S. retail sales dropped 2.8 percent in October, and analysts don't expect the situation to improve anytime soon. The bad news has owners all over the country wondering how they're going to maintain a steady stream of revenue during this dismal holiday shopping season. Some are banking on kiosks—small, independent stands that sell merchandise—to supplement their income. But this approach, if not handled properly, can be more trouble than it's wo...

Because tenants often seek financing to help them run their businesses, you probably get several requests from tenants each month for a landlord's lien waiver. Without the lien waiver, a tenant's lender may refuse to go through with the loan, or an equipment lessor may refuse to lease expensive equipment to the tenant. A lien waiver typically states that you agree to waive a valuable right—that is, the right to take possession of the tenant's personal ...

Hurricane Ike's push into Texas, home of nearly one quarter of the nation's refining capacity, had a significant impact on gas prices across the nation. Several states, many of which were not in the tropical storm's path, saw gas prices that surpassed the $4 a gallon mark, with some consumers paying as much as $5.09 per gallon.

A cell phone service provider's offer to lease a portion of your building's rooftop may seem like easy money. But if you agree to the provisions in a standard rooftop lease without carefully analyzing each clause in the agreement, you will probably regret the decision.

We'll review the seven main clauses in a standard rooftop lease agreement and make suggestions for negotiating lease language that's more owner-friendly than the industry's boile...

The safety of your tenants and their employees and customers is vital to the success of your business'as well as to your peace of mind. You don't want to wait until you are faced with an emergency, such as a fire, to find out that you don't have an adequate emergency response and evacuation plan.

As finding good tenants becomes increasingly difficult, owners will want to lock down good prospects as quickly as possible. But what happens when an otherwise excellent prospective tenant wants to sign the lease, but can't commit until it knows whether its financing has been approved?

Time kills deals, says New Jersey attorney Marc L. Ripp, and if you are like most owners, you want to close the deal as soon as possible. The solution: Rather than waiting to se...

Owning a mixed-use property—that is, a building with both residential occupants and retail tenants—has its advantages. For example, popular retail tenants benefit from the on-site customer foot traffic. And potential residents may enjoy the easy access to shopping, services, or entertainment. But there is a downside.

If your building or center has multiple tenants, at least one of them will want the unlimited right to expand its space if business grows, and the option to exercise the expansion right at its convenience.

As an owner, you might be hesitant to include an expansion option in the lease, because it indirectly ties up open space in your building, which ultimately ends up costing you money. However, since your goal is always 100 percent occupancy, you may have to grant...