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Sample audit

Westfield Plaza

A sample CAM (Common Area Maintenance) audit. Read every finding and the dispute letter draft. No signup needed.

$11,480

flagged in this sample audit

overcharges found

2023

reconciliation year

Findings

The 4 overcharges in this sample

Every finding cites the lease clause and the statement line it came from. The math shows how we get to the dollar amount. Open a finding to see the evidence.

Management Fee Overcharge
High severity
The landlord charged a 5% management fee. Your lease caps it at 3%. They billed more than the lease allows.
$4,120
See the evidenceHide the evidence
Lease clause
“Management fees shall not exceed three percent (3%) of total Common Area costs.”
Section 6.3, page 12
Statement reference
- 2023 CAM statement — line 14, Management Fee
How we calculated it
Your lease caps the management fee at 3% of CAM costs. The landlord billed 5%. On your client's $206,000 CAM total, the cap allows $6,180 but they were billed $10,300 — an overcharge of $4,120.
CAM Cap Violation
High severity
Your lease only lets controllable costs rise 5% a year. The landlord billed more than that cap.
$3,540
See the evidenceHide the evidence
Lease clause
“Controllable Operating Expenses shall not increase by more than five percent (5%) per calendar year.”
Section 6.1, page 11
Statement reference
- 2023 CAM statement — Controllable subtotal
How we calculated it
Last year's controllable CAM was $148,000, so this year's 5% cap is $155,400. The landlord billed $158,940 — $3,540 above the cap.
Pro-Rata Share Error
High severity
Your lease sets your client's share at 2,990 SF of a 26,000 SF building. That is 11.5%. The statement divided by 23,000 SF instead, which raised the share to 13.0%. Your client paid for more space than they rent.
$2,300
See the evidenceHide the evidence
Lease clause
“Tenant's Proportionate Share shall be a fraction, the numerator of which is the rentable area of the Premises (2,990 square feet) and the denominator of which is the total rentable area of the Building (26,000 square feet), equal to eleven and one-half percent (11.5%).”
Section 2.4, page 4
Statement reference
- 2023 CAM statement — Proportionate Share line
How we calculated it
Lease share: 2,990 SF ÷ 26,000 SF = 11.5%. Statement share: 2,990 SF ÷ 23,000 SF = 13.0%. On the $153,333 shared pool, the correct share is $17,633. They billed $19,933. Overcharge: $2,300.
Landlord Overhead Pass-Through
Medium severity
The bill included corporate office costs. Your lease only allows costs to run this one property.
$1,520
See the evidenceHide the evidence
Lease clause
“Common Area costs shall include only expenses of operating and maintaining the Common Areas.”
Section 6.2, page 11
Statement reference
- 2023 CAM statement — lines 22 to 24
How we calculated it
The statement passed through $1,520 in corporate-level costs — regional manager travel and home-office accounting. Your lease only allows costs for running this property, so these do not belong in the bill.

One more thing to review

Advisory finding: no dollar amount yet

This finding has no dollar amount yet. It is still worth a look before the audit closes.

Gross-Up Review

Low severity

The lease lets the landlord gross up variable costs, like cleaning, to 95% occupancy. The statement looks like it grossed up fixed costs too, such as taxes and insurance. The lease does not allow that. One year of data is not enough to price it. Review the gross-up schedule before you bill it.

See the evidence

Lease clause

“Variable expenses may be grossed up to reflect ninety-five percent (95%) occupancy.”

Section 6.5, page 13

Advisory only. The clause allows gross-up of variable expenses at 95% occupancy. Confirm fixed costs like taxes and insurance were not grossed up.

The action half

The dispute letter draft

The audit ends with action. This draft letter is built from the findings above. Your firm reviews it, puts it on your letterhead, and sends it.

[Tenant Name] [Tenant Address] [Tenant Email] Date: [Date] Westfield Plaza Holdings, LLC [Landlord Mailing Address] Re: CAM Reconciliation Statement, 2023 Reconciliation Year Property: Westfield Plaza, 1420 Market Street, Suite 140, Austin, TX 78701 Subject: Request for Cooperative Review of Identified Discrepancies Dear Westfield Plaza Holdings, LLC, I hope this letter finds you well. I value our ongoing business relationship and the work that goes into each year's CAM reconciliation. I am writing about the 2023 CAM reconciliation statement for my tenancy at Westfield Plaza. After a careful review of the 2023 statement against the terms of my lease, I found four items that appear inconsistent with those terms. The combined discrepancy totals $11,480.00 allocated to my tenancy. I am not suggesting any of this was intentional. Reconciliations like this involve many moving parts, and I am writing in a spirit of transparency and shared accuracy. I hope we can review the items below together and reach an agreement.

Read the full letter

FINDING 1: Management Fee Overcharge Amount at Issue: $4,120.00 My lease, Section 6.3, caps the management fee at three percent (3%) of total Common Area costs. The 2023 statement billed a management fee of five percent (5%) on a CAM base of $206,000.00, which comes to $10,300.00. At the 3% cap, the fee should have been $6,180.00 — a difference of $4,120.00. Lease provision: "Management fees shall not exceed three percent (3%) of total Common Area costs." (Section 6.3, p. 12)

FINDING 2: CAM Cap Violation Amount at Issue: $3,540.00 My lease, Section 6.1, caps year-over-year growth in controllable operating expenses at five percent (5%). Last year's controllable CAM was $148,000.00, so this year's cap is $155,400.00. The 2023 statement billed $158,940.00 in controllable costs — $3,540.00 above the cap. Lease provision: "Controllable Operating Expenses shall not increase by more than five percent (5%) per calendar year." (Section 6.1, p. 11)

FINDING 3: Pro-Rata Share Error Amount at Issue: $2,300.00 My lease, Section 2.4, sets my proportionate share at 2,990 SF of the 26,000 SF building — eleven and one-half percent (11.5%). The 2023 statement divided by 23,000 SF instead, raising my share to 13.0%. On the $153,333.00 shared CAM pool, my correct share is $17,633.00, but I was billed $19,933.00 — an overcharge of $2,300.00. Lease provision: "Tenant's Proportionate Share shall be a fraction, the numerator of which is the rentable area of the Premises (2,990 square feet) and the denominator of which is the total rentable area of the Building (26,000 square feet), equal to eleven and one-half percent (11.5%)." (Section 2.4, p. 4)

FINDING 4: Landlord Overhead Pass-Through Amount at Issue: $1,520.00 My lease, Section 6.2, limits Common Area costs to expenses of operating and maintaining the Common Areas at this property. The 2023 statement includes $1,520.00 in corporate-level costs — regional manager travel and home-office accounting — that fall outside this scope. Lease provision: "Common Area costs shall include only expenses of operating and maintaining the Common Areas." (Section 6.2, p. 11)

PROPOSED NEXT STEPS I respectfully request a written response within thirty (30) days of the date of this letter. Please review the four items above and either (a) provide documentation supporting each charge as billed, or (b) issue a corrected reconciliation statement and credit my account for any confirmed overcharges. I am glad to resolve this together and am happy to schedule a call to discuss any of the items above. Thank you for your time and attention to this matter. Sincerely, [Tenant Name] [Title] [Company] [Phone] [Email]

A draft for your review, not legal advice. Have counsel review before sending.

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