Commercial Lease Review
Base rent is only one part of a business lease. LiabilityScore™ scans the uploaded agreement for a 0–100 risk score and a plain-English breakdown of flagged clauses. This guide brings franchise, independent retail, restaurant, medical/wellness, and office leasing into one place, with the costs and personal commitments that can sit alongside rent. Higher scores indicate lower assessed contractual risk, not a recommendation to sign.
Scan your lease freeWhat We Analyze
- Rent escalations and additional-rent obligations
- NNN expenses and common-area maintenance (CAM) terms
- Repair, maintenance, insurance, and indemnification
- Permitted use, alterations, and restoration duties
- Assignment, subletting, and consent requirements
- Renewal notices, holdover, and termination terms
- Default, cure periods, and acceleration clauses
- Personal guaranty scope and any stated limits
Different businesses, different lease questions
Business type, lease structure, and guaranty terms are separate dimensions. A franchised restaurant can have a NNN lease and a personal guaranty at the same time. The sections below describe terms that may appear in the documents; the obligations depend on the actual wording.
Franchise tenants
The lease and franchise agreement are separate documents. Permitted use, signage, remodel approvals, assignment, and default provisions can interact with brand requirements. A franchise agreement scan does not establish that the lease is compatible with the franchise, or vice versa.
Independent retail and small business
A retail lease may address signage, exclusive use, required operating hours, co-tenancy, percentage rent, or relocation. The wording determines whether a sales decline, another tenant’s departure, or a move within the property affects rent or occupancy obligations.
Restaurant and food service
A restaurant lease may allocate responsibility for ventilation, grease systems, utilities, equipment, outdoor seating, and improvements. Build-out deadlines, rent commencement, and any opening conditions describe what happens if the space is not ready when expected.
Medical and wellness practices
A medical office, clinic, spa, or wellness lease may define permitted services, specialized plumbing or equipment, alteration approvals, and restoration. Lease wording alone does not confirm licensing, zoning, accessibility, or other regulatory compliance.
Office and professional services
Office terms may cover after-hours access, HVAC charges, shared facilities, tenant improvements, and subletting. Expansion, contraction, and early-exit provisions, if present, describe how a change in staffing or space needs affects the commitment.
Lease structures and costs beyond base rent
A label is a starting point. The expense definitions, exclusions, allocation formula, and exhibits describe the actual obligations. This page does not calculate an all-in occupancy budget from a lease label.
Gross and modified-gross leases
A gross lease may bundle specified building expenses into rent. Modified-gross terms may divide expenses between landlord and tenant or charge increases above a base year. Included costs, excluded services, and adjustment language matter more than the heading.
Single, double, and triple net (NNN)
Net lease labels describe expense allocation. NNN commonly refers to property taxes, insurance, and maintenance in addition to base rent. The document may also allocate capital repairs, management fees, or structural work; the NNN label alone does not settle those costs.
CAM and operating expenses
Common-area maintenance (CAM) provisions may specify estimated payments, annual reconciliation, a tenant’s share, exclusions, caps, and audit rights. Gross-up language and the area used in the allocation formula can change the charge even when base rent stays the same.
Percentage rent and rent increases
A percentage-rent clause may add a sales-based payment above a defined breakpoint. Fixed increases, index adjustments, minimum increases, and resets are separate terms. Sales definitions and adjustment dates describe how each payment is calculated.
Personal guaranties alongside the business lease
The tenant entity and an individual guarantor can make separate promises. A guaranty may be embedded in the lease or supplied as another document. A scan only considers the text supplied; it cannot establish the effect of an unseen guaranty, amendment, or release.
Scope and duration
Guaranty wording may cover rent alone or also additional rent, damages, fees, and other obligations. Continuing language may address renewals, amendments, assignment, or holdover. Ownership percentage is not a substitute for the obligation stated in the document.
Caps, rolling limits, and burn-off
A cap can state a dollar ceiling; a rolling limit can use a defined period of rent; a burn-off can tie an end date to stated conditions. Whether fees, additional rent, or a later default sit outside a limit depends on the wording.
Good-guy and surrender conditions
A guaranty described as good-guy may tie the end of some obligations to notice, payment, and surrender conditions. The label alone does not establish a release or erase amounts already due. Conditions and exceptions are part of the document-level picture.
Document scope and legal judgment
A lease score does not establish enforceability, personal asset exposure, or whether a guarantor has been released. Those questions depend on the complete documents, facts, and applicable law. A licensed attorney can assess the legal effect for a particular situation.
Clauses that can concentrate lease exposure
Costs without a defined boundary
Expense language without exclusions or limits can leave future charges difficult to estimate. Repair obligations, capital work, and restoration can create commitments beyond scheduled rent.
Exit and transfer restrictions
Consent conditions, continuing liability after assignment, renewal notice windows, and holdover provisions describe whether leaving the space also ends the financial commitment.
Default remedies and linked agreements
Acceleration, short cure periods, and cross-default wording can connect one missed obligation to a broader remedy. A lease and guaranty may describe different obligations following the same event.
Terms that make the commitment easier to understand
- Defined expense categories, allocation methods, and reconciliation records
- Express responsibility for repairs, improvements, and restoration
- Clear rent commencement, adjustment dates, and notice requirements
- Stated conditions for assignment, renewal, and termination
- Explicit guaranty limits, duration, and release conditions, where included
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a commercial lease review cover?
This guide covers rent, expense allocation, operating restrictions, repairs, exit terms, default remedies, and personal guaranties. LiabilityScore™ scans supplied contract text for assessed risk and flagged clauses. Legal review also involves facts and legal judgment beyond a document scan.
Can LiabilityScore™ scan a franchise lease?
A commercial lease for a franchise location can be scanned as a lease. The franchise agreement is a separate document with separate obligations. This guide does not promise cross-document reconciliation or confirmation that the two agreements are compatible.
Does a NNN lease include CAM charges?
NNN and CAM describe related cost questions, but neither label determines the full bill. Expense definitions, exclusions, allocation, and reconciliation language determine which charges the lease assigns to the tenant.
Can I scan a restaurant, retail, medical, or office lease?
These agreements can be scanned as commercial leases. The report concerns the terms in the supplied text. A business label alone does not establish the obligations, the condition of the premises, or whether the space is suitable for the intended use.
Does a lease scan include a separate personal guaranty?
Only text supplied for the scan is considered. A separate guaranty or amendment that is not included is outside that scan. The personal guaranty page explains the instrument, and the guaranty calculator provides illustrative financial scenarios rather than a legal liability determination.
Is LiabilityScore™ legal advice?
No. LiabilityScore™ provides contract analysis and educational information. Reports describe what the contract says and identify clauses commonly modified in negotiated versions of similar contracts. LiabilityScore™ does not provide legal advice and does not recommend any particular action regarding your specific contract — the legal judgment is yours. For advice specific to your situation, especially for high-stakes agreements, consult a licensed attorney.
Related contract types
All lease risk scoring
Residential and commercial lease overview
Franchise agreements
Separate franchisor and franchisee obligations
Personal guaranty risk scoring
Scope, limits, and continuing obligations
Guaranty exposure calculator
Illustrative financial scenarios
CAM reconciliation explained
Estimates, adjustments, and allocation
Net lease structures
Single, double, and triple net terms
Contract risk review
Business contract scoring overview
Plans and reports
Current scan and report options
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LiabilityScore™ provides contract analysis and educational information, not legal advice. High-stakes contracts should be reviewed by a licensed attorney.
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