Specialty Advisors

Add leased hotel cost reviews

Screen hospitality clients for a focused lease cost service.

By Angel Campa, FounderUpdated July 15, 2026

I work as a principal engineer. I built the engine behind these audits. Each finding points to the lease clause and the bill line. Your team reviews and signs first.

Add leased hotel cost reviews

Review lease costs only when your client is a tenant.

First, find the contract that creates each charge. Then confirm the paying entity and source files.

Exclude owner occupied hotels from CAM review. Also exclude HMA and franchise fee questions.

A hotel contract guide shows the main split. A hotel lease puts risk on the tenant. An HMA puts hotel work with the owner's manager.

That screen comes before any CAM sales talk.

Name each contract

Hotel work may use several contracts at once.

An ABA guide maps hotel roles. Use those roles to map each company.

Build an entity map before reviewing costs.

Question Proof Owner Stop rule
Who owns the real estate? Deed or ownership record Deal advisor Ownership is unclear
Who leases the site? Signed lease Lease reviewer No tenant lease exists
Who runs the hotel? HMA or lease Hospitality advisor Operator role is unclear
Who licenses the brand? Franchise agreement Brand advisor Fee comes from brand terms
Who pays the charge? Invoice and contract Cost reviewer Paying entity does not match

One company name may appear in several places. Do not assume those roles are the same.

Route each cost

Every cost needs one governing document.

Charge Usual source Review lane
Ground rent Ground lease Deal and lease review
Percentage rent Lease rent clause Lease review
CAM or operating costs Lease and CAM statement CAM review
Property tax Lease and tax support Tax and CAM review
Insurance Lease and insurance support Insurance and CAM review
HMA fee Hotel management agreement HMA review
Franchise fee Franchise agreement Brand review

Treat the table as a route map. The signed contracts still control each answer.

Do not put hotel payroll into CAM review. Do not put room costs into CAM review.

Those are hotel costs. They are not landlord lease pass throughs.

Check CAM proof

A lease based CAM review needs matched files.

Start with these records:

  • Signed lease
  • Every signed lease change
  • Annual CAM statement
  • Landlord cost support, if held
  • Delivery email or other proof
  • Tenant payment record, if needed

Ensemble covers landlord cost bills. Its guide covers annual statements, audit terms, gross up, and caps.

Those rights are not the same for all leases. The signed lease sets the rule for each client.

If the lease is missing, stop. If the statement is missing, stop. If legal meaning is unclear, ask counsel.

Use four fit results

Give every intake one clear result.

Result Use it when Next step
CAM fit Lease and CAM files match Set review scope
Needs files Core proof is missing Request the named file
Expert route Another contract controls Send it to that reviewer
Counsel review Legal meaning is unclear Send the clause to counsel

Do not force an HMA issue into CAM fit. Do not force owned costs into CAM fit.

The screen may end with no CAM service. That is still useful client advice.

Walk one fit screen

This example is fictional. The property and facts are made up.

Harbor House rents its hotel site. Harbor Operator LLC signed the site lease.

The owner hired Bay Manager LLC under an HMA. The brand has a separate franchise agreement.

The landlord sent a CAM statement to Harbor Operator LLC. The signed site lease has a CAM clause.

That statement enters the CAM review lane.

The HMA base fee stays in HMA review. The franchise fee stays in brand review.

The site also pays ground rent. That amount stays in ground lease review.

Each reviewer gets the right source. One fee stays apart from the next.

Copy the blank screen

Use one row for each property and contract.

Field Entry
Property
Paying entity
Property owner
Contract type
Charge type
Governing document
Source files present
Review owner
Stop rule
Fit result

Add a new row when the contract changes. Do not blend several charge types into one row.

Move each fit site into the portfolio queue. Put ground rent questions in the ground lease guide. When an HMA controls the fee, follow the HMA guide.

Use the hotel advisor pillar to set screen scope.

A rare charge may need a new owner. The specialty advisor hub names that role.

Another firm may own the screen. Pick that firm in the Practice Growth hub.

Where CAMAudit fits

Your firm owns the fit screen and final scope. CAMAudit fits only rows marked CAM fit.

Hotel advisors choose which leased sites enter this review.

CAMAudit reads the supplied lease and CAM files. It may flag items and cite their source lines.

It can build a branded CAM audit. Your firm reviews and signs that work.

CAMAudit may prepare a dispute letter draft. The draft needs your firm's review.

It is not legal advice. Have counsel review before sending.

Use the service line guide to package the work.

Get started

Sources

Practice Growth

Keep growing this service

See the Hospitality advisors growth guide

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