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50 • MAY 2012 • WORLD FENCE NEWS LOGICAL DECISIONS, INC * 9, 6, & 11 GAUGE PREFORMED STEEL * 1 5/8 ", 1 7/8", 2 3/8", 3", & 4" * CORRECTIONAL & MILITARY APPROVED * GALVANIZED, ALUMINIZED, VINYL COATED, & STAINLESS STEEL 800-676-5537 www.LDI.com 225-274-1115 Check out World Fence News OnLine! www.worldfencenews.com Twelve steps to a better property lease BY PHILLIP M. PERRY So your property lease is up for re- newal. Well, polish your reading glasses and sharpen your pencils. It's time to fine tune the fine print to get more favorable terms. Rent, after all, is one of your biggest expenses. In these times of lower expectations for revenue in- creases, it makes sense to fatten your profit by paring your overhead. "Many people believe that if their space needs are being met, come re- newal time they should just sign on the bottom line," says Myra Maher- Martin, vice-president of Joe Foster Company, a Dallas-based real estate brokerage and advisory services com- pany operating nationwide. "Strategi- cally, that is not in their best interest." The problem, says Martin, is that landlords often have creative ideas about modifying lease terms. "If land- lords are going to try to obtain more favorable terms, tenants should do the same," says Martin. Sky brightens for tenants Here's some good news: You now have more leverage for negotiating fa- vorable terms. That's because more business property has come onto the market. With the current softening of the economy, more businesses have ei- ther closed shop or put expansion plans on hold. "National statistics show that there is a higher vacancy rate in many markets," says Bob Wies- ner, senior partner at The Robert Thomas Group, a Chicago-based real estate lease auditing firm. "That means rents will either stabilize or come down a bit. Furthermore, tenants will have a little more negotiating power in terms beyond base rent." Many factors, including shocks to At Western Tube & Conduit customer satisfaction and quality are the first order of business. Our Fencepost and Fencerail production is ISO-9001:2008 certified - and our products are manufactured to meet all the applicable state, federal, industrial and regulatory specifications and requirements. While we regularly stock standardized products and sizes, we are happy to provide custom dimensions as well. All our Fence products are galvanized with high purity zinc. We use high frequency welding (ERW) to turn the highest quality strip steel into tubing, and then a continuous hot-galvanizing process to zinc-coat the products smoothly and evenly. A zinc-rich interior organic coating, a chromate conversion coating, and a clear exterior organic coating provide the complete finish package that gives them superior protection against the elements and long life as a result. Gal-Z serves customers looking for shaped Fence tubing as well as corrosion-protected mechanical tubing. It can be purchased in squares and in rectangles, and it provides excellent environmental durability while also fulfilling the need for strength and weldability. regional industries and commercial property overbuilding, can contribute to sudden market changes. "When the dotcoms crashed, for example, parts of San Francisco suddenly went from one of the nation's tightest property mar- kets to one of the softest," says Maura Cochran, president of Bartram & Coch ran, real estate and economic de- velopment consultants in Hartford. "Silicon Valley was vastly overbuilt." Lesson learned: Space availability will vary by city and neighborhood. Prior to developing a lease renewal strategy, find out what's happening in your area. "You need to know if you are in a market that has become stronger or weaker," says Cochran. "Talk with real estate brokers in your town." (Many brokers, adds Cochran, publish current market analyses on their web sites.) "As a rule, if a market has more than seven percent vacancy it is considered a tenant's market," with a requi site improvement in nego- tiating power. Even if your lease has some time to run, you may want to negotiate an extension now. Given the economic problems that we have experienced and which are still on the horizon, your landlord may jump at the chance for shelter in the form of a proven tenant. Fact is, the landlord will benefit in many ways if you continue your lease. For starters, there will be no costly unrented time while a new tenant is continued on page 52