Glossary
Caps & Limits
Non-Cumulative CAM Cap
A cap that resets every year against the prior year's actual expense. Nothing carries forward. If actual costs come in under the cap one year, the landlord gets no extra room to use later.
Firm impact
This is the simpler cap to verify: one number against one prior-year number. Landlords sometimes apply carryforward logic anyway, on a lease with no banking clause at all, which inflates the current bill.
How this gets abused
A lease sets a plain 5% non-cumulative cap with no carryforward clause. The landlord claims 3% of unused room from last year and bills an 8% increase this year. Nothing in the lease supports the extra 3%.
Practitioner note
Confirm the increase against last year's actual billed amount only, never a multi-year base. If a landlord cites banked or carried-over room, ask them to point to the specific clause. Non-cumulative leases usually have none.
Related terms
FAQ
Questions about non-cumulative cam cap
Can a landlord apply carryforward to a non-cumulative cap?
No, not unless the lease separately allows it. A non-cumulative cap by definition resets each year against the prior year's actual. Any carryforward claim needs its own clause in the lease.
Which cap type is more common in commercial leases?
Both appear often. Retail and office leases split fairly evenly between the two, so your firm should read each lease's cap language rather than assume one structure applies.
You know the term. Now check the math.
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