Glossary
Building Operations
Elevator Maintenance
Routine service contracts for building elevators, including inspection, repair, and parts. This is recoverable CAM. A full elevator modernization or system replacement is capital, not maintenance.
Firm impact
The test is whether the invoice describes routine service or a system upgrade. A capital item billed as maintenance moves an otherwise excluded cost straight into the recoverable CAM pool.
How this gets abused
A $180,000 elevator cab and control-system modernization gets billed across three years as 'elevator maintenance,' spreading a capital replacement into a CAM pool that excludes capital expenditures.
Practitioner note
Request the elevator vendor's scope of work. Words like 'modernization,' 'replace,' or 'upgrade' signal a capital expenditure, no matter which budget line the cost was coded to. This overlaps with CAMAudit's GL CapEx in Operating Pool rule.
Related terms
FAQ
Questions about elevator maintenance
Is elevator maintenance always recoverable CAM?
Routine service and repair usually are. A full system modernization or replacement is capital and should be excluded from the CAM pool, or amortized if the lease allows it.
How can my firm tell maintenance from modernization on an elevator invoice?
Request the vendor's scope of work. Language about replacing controls, cabs, or major components signals a capital project rather than routine upkeep.
You know the term. Now check the math.
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