Commercial lease glossary

Amounts payable in addition to base rent under the lease. They may include operating-cost, tax, insurance or other recoveries, depending on the document.

A request for payment of part of a tenant improvement contribution, normally supported by the evidence and conditions identified in the lease or work letter.

A transfer of a tenant's leasehold interest to another party, subject to the lease, landlord consent requirements and applicable law. The label alone does not establish a release.

A traceable record supporting a candidate premises availability state, including the supplying party, source type, observation date, location of the evidence and whether the source is authorized to make the availability statement.

Revenue remaining after subtracting cost of goods sold under the business's accounting definition, before other operating costs, financing and tax.

A structure in which more property costs are included in the stated rent, sometimes with base-year or expense-stop adjustments.

A lease mechanism that may adjust certain variable operating costs to a stated occupancy level for allocation purposes.

Federal goods and services tax or harmonized sales tax. Commercial real-property leases are generally taxable supplies when the supplier is required or chooses to register, subject to the facts.

An arithmetic percentage-rent breakpoint calculated by dividing annual base rent by the stated percentage-rent rate, subject to the actual lease terms.

A normalized base-rent measure after defined rent abatements and incentives, usually expressed per square foot over the term.

A structure in which the tenant pays base rent plus some or most defined property expenses.

The entered period during which a notice or option exercise may be delivered under the controlling documents, potentially including both an earliest permitted date and a final deadline.

A controlled planning limit for recurring premises cost, defined by an annual or monthly amount and the cost categories included in that amount.

A defined annual occupancy-cost numerator divided by a defined annual sales or revenue denominator, expressed as a percentage.

The comparison of estimated operating-cost payments with the landlord's calculated actual recoveries for a period.

A contractual right that may allow the tenant to extend the term if stated conditions and notice requirements are satisfied.

The share of a defined portfolio's entered rentable area or current annual occupancy cost associated with a province, property type, business unit, landlord or other disclosed segment.

A controlled inventory that connects material lease and related operating requirements to their authority, responsible party, accountable owner, schedule, evidence state and exception history.

The core rent for the premises before separately charged recoveries and other occupancy costs. It may be stated per square foot, per month or per year.

An expense reference period used in some gross or modified-gross leases. The tenant may pay its share of increases above that reference amount.

An interruption, slowdown or service impact caused by construction, phased occupancy, systems migration or a physical move, expressed only through a supportable business-impact assumption.

Common area maintenance, a label often used for shared-property operating costs. The exact included expenses depend on the lease.

A documented modification to construction scope, price, schedule or another contract requirement, which may add cost, provide a credit or reallocate responsibility.

A date from which a lease term or particular obligation begins. Possession, fixturing, lease commencement and rent commencement may be different dates.

An amount retained from construction payments under a contract or applicable provincial law, subject to project roles, statutory rules, lien periods and release conditions.

A negotiated category of operating expenses that may be subject to an increase limit. The definition and exclusions determine what the cap actually covers.

A building or premises record retained for comparison against a controlled tenant requirement, whether its current availability is confirmed, coming soon, unknown, unavailable or withdrawn.

A source-controlled schedule of lease deadlines, notice windows, planning checkpoints, responsibilities, status and completion evidence tied to exact governing-document references.

The internal person or function accountable for monitoring an obligation, assembling or reviewing evidence, escalating exceptions and maintaining the record, whether or not that person is the contractual performing party.

An entered state indicating that a requirement, date, evidence item, outcome or responsibility needs accountable review, correction, escalation or a documented decision.

The controlled shutdown, removal or disposal of furniture, equipment, technology, inventory and services when premises are vacated or materially reconfigured.

The annual rate used to translate future cash flows into present value for comparison purposes.

A transition period in which the tenant carries cost at both the current and new premises while construction, commissioning, moving or surrender work is completed.

A contractual or legal rule that may specify when a notice is treated as received after a stated delivery method, subject to the complete document, facts and applicable law.

Records retained to support how and when a notice package was transmitted and received, such as the final notice, authorization, courier receipt, tracking history, acknowledgment and file note.

A normalized rent or cost measure that reflects a defined set of payments and incentives over the term. Different practitioners may use different inclusions.

A scheduled change in rent or another charge. It may be a percentage increase, fixed-dollar step or custom schedule.

A portfolio view that groups entered lease expiries by calendar year or planning interval, usually retaining expired or holdover records and later expiries as separate categories.

A disclosed control measure showing whether an obligation that requires proof has an expected evidence type, stable reference, collection or issue date and verification state, with expiry where relevant.

A period before opening or rent commencement when the tenant may access the premises for construction, installation or setup, subject to the document.

A scaled review that places an operating program, furniture, equipment, circulation and other requirements into an actual premises plan to test practical accommodation.

A period of reduced or abated rent. The abatement may apply only to base rent or to a broader set of recurring charges.

Occupancy after the lease term ends without a replacement agreement, governed by the lease and applicable law.

Work the landlord agrees to perform or deliver, which may be separate from a tenant improvement allowance.

A documented agreement ending or modifying the landlord-tenant relationship before scheduled expiry on negotiated terms, which may include payments, condition work and surviving liability.

The date the lease term ends, subject to the executed lease, amendments and any valid extension or renewal.

A factor used in some measurement systems to allocate certain shared areas in calculating rentable area from occupant or usable area.

A controlled inventory of leased, committed, holdover and relevant closed locations linked to their governing documents, dates, areas, current costs, owners, strategies and evidence state.

A requirement allocated by the controlling lease documents to a party, such as delivering insurance evidence, maintaining equipment, providing information, operating to a stated standard or completing restoration work.

A negotiated structure in which some property costs are included in rent and others are paid or recovered separately.

A dated, source-controlled comparison of commercial property candidates against one tenant requirement, showing availability states, preliminary economics, operating fit, missing evidence, tours and decision status.

The supportable high-demand number or percentage of people expected to use a workplace at the same time, which may differ materially from total headcount.

Rent calculated from a defined percentage of sales or revenue, often above an agreed breakpoint, and most common in retail leasing.

The date the tenant is entitled or expected to receive access or control of the premises under the deal documents.

The current value of scheduled future cash flows using a stated discount rate.

The tenant's allocated share of defined property expenses, often related to rentable area but subject to the lease calculation.

A negotiated landlord right that may allow the landlord to terminate or reclaim all or part of the premises after receiving a transfer or sublease request.

The date on which a stated rent obligation begins, which may differ by rent category and from lease commencement or possession.

The area used to calculate rent under the stated measurement basis. It may include allocated shared areas in addition to occupant or usable area.

Work the tenant may be required to perform when altering or surrendering the premises, depending on the lease.

Cash, letter of credit or other security delivered in connection with lease obligations, subject to the document.

A structured schedule of workpoints, rooms, operating zones, support functions, quantities and area assumptions that translates business activity into a planning requirement.

An arrangement under which the existing tenant grants occupancy rights to another party while usually remaining bound to the landlord under the head lease.

A disclosed age or review state for property, availability or asking-cost evidence measured from its observation date to the market survey's stated as-of date.

A landlord contribution toward eligible tenant improvement costs, usually subject to defined conditions and payment mechanics.

A controlled record of a business's property type, area range, geography, budget, timing, physical criteria, status and confidentiality for a commercial space search.

The committed duration of the lease, excluding or including extension periods as the document provides.

An area intended to represent space usable or occupied by the tenant under a stated measurement method. It may be lower than rentable area.

The weighted average of entered remaining lease term across a defined portfolio population, calculated as of a stated date using rentable area, current annual cost or another disclosed weighting basis.