USPS Mt Vernon Plaza: pro-rata share error case study
A public-record strip-center case study showing how a 4.50% statement share versus a 4.24% lease share produced a $2,340.15 apparent overcharge.
What happened
The USPS lease at Mt Vernon Plaza fixed the tenant share at 4.24%, based on 11,392 square feet out of 268,729 square feet total. The 2020 reconciliation used 4.50% instead. That small percentage-point difference translated into a real annual overcharge on a roughly $900,056 CAM pool and eventually became part of a federal litigation record.
Findings from the pipeline
Rule 13: Landlord Overhead Pass-Through
low confidence
$8,904
'General & Administrative' is classified as landlord overhead, corporate costs such as executive salaries, off-site accounting, and corporate insurance are generally not recoverable from tenants. [scaled to tenant share: 4.2400%]
Statement references
- General & Administrative
Rule 4: Pro-Rata Share Error
high confidence
$2,340
Statement applies 4.5000% pro-rata share but the lease specifies 4.2400%, resulting in an estimated overcharge of $2,340.15. The lease uses a fixed share with no adjustment language.
Lease evidence
Tenant's proportionate share is 4.24%, calculated as 11,392 SF / 268,729 SF total building area.
Section 5.1
Math proof
lease_share=0.0424, stmt_share=0.045, difference=0.0026, total_opex=900056.00, overcharge=2340.15, denominator_type=GLA
Lease evidence
- Tenant proportionate share fixed at 4.24%.
- The lease ties that share to 11,392 square feet over 268,729 square feet total.
- No lease language authorizes the landlord to substitute a higher share later.
- The dispute turned on denominator math, not a disputed service category.
Why this matters
Pro-rata share errors look tiny on paper. They are not. A quarter-point change applied across a full CAM pool can cost tenants thousands each year, and the mistake often survives because reviewers focus on the expense line items instead of the percentage doing the multiplying.
Dispute letter draft excerpt
Request for Review - CAM Reconciliation Statement, 2020, USPS Alexandria Community Branch at Mt Vernon Plaza. The review flagged a confirmed pro-rata share variance worth about $2,340.15.
Related Resources
Check your own CAM statement against the lease
Upload your lease and reconciliation. CAMAudit applies the same rule set used in this public-record case study. Most audits complete in under 5 minutes.
Public-record note
This page summarizes public-record documents and CAMAudit output for educational and marketing purposes. It does not imply endorsement by CVS, Target, or any third party. Readers should review the underlying lease, statement, and dispute timeline for their own facts.