Transaction Advisors

Build a lease cost charter

Turn lease evidence into owned portfolio actions.

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.

Build a lease cost charter

Treat CAM review as one bounded portfolio action.

Set eligible sites, source files, owners, and proof states. Do that before collecting candidate values.

This keeps a review flag from becoming a value claim. Proof must come first.

The EBRD working paper studies planned strategies and action items. Use that frame for this one workstream.

Do not claim that every leased site holds value.

Set the charter boundary

Write one sentence that defines the work.

Use this model:

Review chosen CAM bills against signed lease terms. Route supported items to named owners.

Then state what sits outside the work:

  • Rent moves and site exits
  • Sale and leaseback plans
  • Space cuts and office moves
  • Tax, legal, and valuation advice
  • Final accounting treatment

A&M lists several separate real estate levers. These include expense work and lease changes.

Keep those levers apart. One action should not take credit twice.

Define eligible sites

Start with a rule that another reviewer can repeat.

An eligible row should name:

Field Required entry
Company Legal company name
Site Address or company site code
Lease Signed lease file
Period CAM statement year
Bill Landlord CAM statement
Owner Company finance lead
Rights text Lease section and page
File state Ready or named gap

Do not use a site count alone. A site without files is not review ready.

Set a stop when the signed lease is missing. Set another for a missing bill.

Write the baseline rule

The baseline must use one source period.

Name the amount and source before testing a change. Keep the base year and current year apart.

Use these fields:

  1. Source period
  2. Statement amount
  3. Lease rule
  4. Tested amount
  5. Review item
  6. Firm decision
  7. Final support

Do not blend a planned footprint cut into CAM results. Keep rough model values out of confirmed entries.

KPMG's portfolio paper centers the value plan on sponsor and company alignment. Your baseline needs the same shared rule.

Name each decision owner

One person may not own every gate.

Gate Main owner Needed proof
File ready Company finance lead File list
Test complete Your firm Review record
Action approved Sponsor and company lead Written decision
Landlord contact Company or counsel Sent record
Accounting entry Company controller Ledger support

Counsel owns legal meaning. Your firm should not fill that gap.

Use four proof states

Keep the status words exact.

State Meaning
Identified A test found a review item
Approved A named owner accepted the next step
Landlord response A reply or support arrived
Confirmed result Company records show the final treatment

A flagged item still needs proof. A sent letter still needs a final result.

This status split protects the portfolio report. It also shows the next owner.

Walk one sample charter

This example is fictional. Assume all names are made up.

Assume North Harbor owns two leased clinic groups. Only Group A has signed leases and current CAM bills.

Group File state Review state Owner Next step
Group A Ready Identified Finance lead Firm review
Group B Lease missing Not started Controller Request lease

Group A can enter review. Its item cannot enter confirmed results yet.

Group B stops at file collection. No value estimate fills that gap.

The sample shows work steps only. It predicts no outcome.

Report without double counting

Use a rollup with one row per item.

Keep these columns:

company,site,period,source_amount,review_item,state,decision_owner,action_date,final_support

Count items by state. Keep money out until the source supports it.

If an item moves to another real estate plan, mark the handoff. Do not claim it in both lanes.

Move each charter row

The item rollup is the working record. Its decision owner takes the next step.

Send file gaps to the portfolio review queue. Start new deals with the buyout diligence schedule.

After close, open items need a new owner. Move them to the 100-day action map.

The private equity advisor pillar shows the full path. The Practice Growth hub maps other firm offers.

Some deals need more source work. Find it in the transaction advisor hub.

Where CAMAudit fits

Private equity advisors can add this charter work. Tie it to the value charter.

Your firm owns the charter and each item state.

For an approved row, CAMAudit reads the chosen files. It then runs fixed CAM math.

The branded CAM audit cites the source lines. Your firm reviews and signs the packet.

The named company leader receives the approved next step.

A supported row may produce a dispute letter draft. Your firm reviews that draft first.

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

Set charter duties in the service line guide.

Ready to add this work to your firm? Get started.

Sources

Practice Growth

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