Tenants tend to have less real estate experience than landlords, so the process involves educating tenants to understand the terminology, the forms used, what constitutes rents and additional rents…..the list goes on. Prospective tenants sometimes make the mistake of dealing directly with landlords when they don’t understand the market or the usual terms and conditions that prevail. Informed and well-represented tenants do best when negotiating with a more sophisticated landlord. Note that landlords pay for some or all of the services of the tenant representative.
There is a process that LCRi employs to find space for lease. It is straightforward but involved and described in detail below. LCRi has, over the years, developed a long list of tenant clients. References can be provided to tenants upon request.
Tenant Services Offered by London Commercial Realty Inc. (LCRi), with approximate times required
- Initial Consultation — 1 to 2 hours
- Inspect current facilities
- Determine new requirements: size, location
- Consider lease vs. purchase
- Discuss level of confidentiality
- Explain time frames, forms used, contract involved
- Determine financial capability, sources of funding
- Search for Properties — 5 to 50+ hours
- Local MLS database
- Subscription-based website
- Ontario Real Estate Association website
- Canadian Real Estate Association website
- Several other sources
- Once Property Found — 1 to 2 hours per property
- Confirm availability, price, size, lot size
- Investigate zoning aspects
- Check services
- Send to client for review
- If not acceptable, determine why, narrow search
- If acceptable, preview if requested
- Showing Property — 1 to 3 hours per property
- Schedule, accommodating four parties
- Manage tour of property
- Pre-assemble as much information as possible
- Post-showing debrief
- Pre-offer Preparation — 2 to 5+ hours per report (3)
- Comparative market analysis, lease vs. purchase
- Lease vs. buy analysis, if necessary
- Investment analysis, if requested
- Offer Preparation — 4 to 6 hours
- Assemble information
- Organize conditions. Clauses
- Review with client and legal
- Offer Presentation and Negotiation — 3 to 40+ hours
- Present to listing broker (LB) or owner/landlord
- Review returned document
- Present to client, recommend course of action
- Change and resubmit to LB or owner/landlord
- Repeat cycle if necessary
- Conditional Period Monitoring — 2 to 6+ hours
- Contact parties, as needed, as deadlines happen
- Prepare proper documents to remove or extend conditions
- Have necessary documents executed
- Formal Lease Review — 3 to 6 hours
- Review landlord’s lease to provide comment to client’s lawyer and client
- Compare accepted offer to final lease to confirm inclusions
Range of hours
Activity Minimum Maximum
- Initial Consultation 1 2
- Search for Properties 5 50+
- Once Property Found 1 2 per property
- Showing Property 1 3 per property
- Pre-offer Preparation 3 5+ per report
- Offer Preparation 4 6
- Offer Presentation & Negotiation 3 40+
- Conditional Period Monitoring 2 6+
- Formal Lease Review 3 6
Total 23 130+
Administrative activity: Any transaction requires all parties to have true copies. LCRi makes sure that copies reach their proper destinations, and this administrative time and expense is in addition to times estimated in this report.
In addition to the services described, LCRi will undertake to perform any activity requested by the client that is reasonably within its scope of competency.