Inspections of Tenant-Maintained Assets Should Not be Overlooked

Benjamin Franklin once said “YOU may delay, but time will not, and lost time is never found again.”

Although he probably wasn’t talking about tenant maintained NNN assets, there is still a lesson to be learned in the message.

Oftentimes, maintenance issues with a building can be pushed to the side by tenants who are responsible for the maintenance of the building per their lease, leaving the property owner with significant deferred maintenance at the end of a lease term.

By performing documented, recurring detailed property inspections, property owners can avoid these 5 reasons why maintenance can be overlooked by a tenant.

1) Short-term focus: Tenants generally prioritize immediate profits over long-term building health, especially when they do not own the asset.  They could defer required maintenance to lower the occupancy costs of the facility and help meet their budgets.

2) Lack of expertise: Smaller businesses or those unfamiliar with property management might neglect maintenance due to a lack of knowledge or even understand the lease obligations that their company agreed to.

3) Treating the symptom, not the issue: Tenants might focus only on rectifying or alleviating the symptom, leaving the larger repair for owners to deal with after the lease term, hoping it will not come up in a move out inspection by the landlord.

4) Lack of consistency: Misunderstood lease terms or inconsistent communication from the landlord regarding maintenance expectations inhibit tenants from proactively addressing issues.

5) Competing priorities: Other pressing concerns of the tenant’s facility team, such as special event priorities or business-related projects, might divert attention and resources away from planning and execution of regular maintenance tasks.

By retaining Hiffman National, we will periodically inspect assets and determine if tenants complied with the lease obligations and document any shortfalls found. Many times, the tenants are willingly working with us on compliance after being made aware of the deficiencies, but if not, we have the needed paperwork protecting the landlord’s interest.

For more information related to Hiffman National’s Advisory division comprehensive approach to property inspections, please contact Bob Assoian.

Bob Assoian
Executive Managing Director, Head of Advisory Services
630-317-0761
bassoian@hiffman.com

About NAI Hiffman:

NAI Hiffman is one of the largest independent commercial real estate services firms in the US, with a primary focus on metropolitan Chicago, and part of the NAI Global network. We provide institutional and private leasing, property management, tenant representation, capital markets, project services, research, and marketing services for owners and occupiers of commercial real estate. To meet our clients’ growing needs outside of our exclusive NAI Hiffman territory, we launched Hiffman National, our dedicated property solutions division, which provides property management, project services, and property accounting services across the country. NAI Hiffman | Hiffman National is an award winning company headquartered in suburban Chicago, with more than 250 employees strategically located throughout North America.

About Hiffman National: 

Hiffman National is one of the US’s largest independent commercial real estate property management and advisory firms, providing institutional and private clients exceptional customized solutions for property management, facility management, advisory services, accounting, lease administration, lender services, project management, marketing, and research. The firm’s comprehensive property management platform and attentive approach to service contribute to successful life-long relationships and client satisfaction. As a nationally bestowed Top Workplace, and recognized CRE award winner, Hiffman National is headquartered in suburban Chicago, with more than 250 employees nationally and an additional six hub locations and 25 satellite offices across North America.