Glossary
Lease Types
Credit Tenant Lease
A lease negotiated by a large, creditworthy tenant, usually with a below-market CAM cap and a narrower CAM definition than a smaller tenant in the same building would get. Firms use these terms as a benchmark when disputing a weaker client's broader exposure in a comparable property.
Firm impact
When a client's lease looks unusually broad compared to what a credit tenant negotiated in a similar building, that gap is a useful data point in a renewal negotiation, even outside the scope of the current CAM audit findings.
How this gets abused
A national retail chain negotiated a 3% non-cumulative CAM cap and a narrow CAM definition excluding management fees entirely. A smaller tenant in the same shopping center, with far less negotiating leverage, has a 6% cumulative cap and a CAM definition that includes management fees, insurance, and reserves.
Practitioner note
When benchmarking a client's lease terms, look for publicly available data on anchor or credit tenant deals in comparable properties. It's useful context for a renewal conversation, not a standalone audit finding.
Related terms
FAQ
Questions about credit tenant lease
Why do credit tenants get better CAM terms?
Landlords compete harder to land large, creditworthy tenants and are willing to offer lower caps and narrower CAM definitions in exchange for the stability that tenant's lease brings to the property.
Can a firm use credit tenant terms as evidence in a dispute?
They're useful context for a renewal negotiation or a broader conversation with the client about market terms, but a CAM audit finding still needs to rest on the client's own lease language, not another tenant's deal.
You know the term. Now check the math.
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