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About

Commercial Real Estate (CRE) leases differ fundamentally from residential agreements. Rent is often quoted annually per square foot, and additional costs like Common Area Maintenance (CAM), taxes, and insurance can double the effective monthly payment. This tool addresses the complexity of Triple Net (NNN) versus Full Service Gross leases.

Prospective tenants must calculate the "Effective Rent" which accounts for Tenant Improvement (TI) allowances and annual compounding escalations. A lease starting at $25/sqft might effectively cost $32/sqft by year 5 due to 3% annual bumps. This calculator aggregates base rent, operating expenses (OpEx), and amortization of TI allowances to project true occupancy costs.

commercial real estate NNN lease office rent retail lease industrial space

Formulas

The calculator derives the Monthly Total Rent for any given year t.

Annual Base Rent:

Rentt = SqFt × BaseRate × (1 + Escalation)t-1

NNN / OpEx:

OpExtotal = SqFt × (CAM + Tax + Ins)

Monthly Payment:

Monthly = Rentt + OpExtotal12

Note: In Full Service Gross leases, OpEx is typically 0 (included in base), whereas in NNN, the tenant pays all OpEx.

Reference Data

Metro AreaAvg. Office Rent (Class A)Avg. Retail RentAvg. NNN OpEx
New York (Manhattan)$75.00 / sqft$120.00 / sqft$28.00 / sqft
San Francisco$68.00 / sqft$55.00 / sqft$22.00 / sqft
Austin, TX$45.00 / sqft$35.00 / sqft$14.00 / sqft
Chicago$38.00 / sqft$28.00 / sqft$16.00 / sqft
Atlanta$32.00 / sqft$25.00 / sqft$10.00 / sqft
National Avg (Industrial)$9.50 / sqft-$3.50 / sqft

Frequently Asked Questions

In a Triple Net (NNN) lease, the tenant pays the base rent plus property taxes, insurance, and maintenance (CAM). In a Full Service Gross lease, the landlord pays these expenses out of the rent collected. NNN leases usually have lower base rents but higher variable risks for the tenant.
Usable SqFt is the space you actually occupy. Rentable SqFt includes a share of common areas (lobbies, hallways, bathrooms). The "Load Factor" represents this difference. You pay rent based on Rentable SqFt, not Usable.
Most commercial leases include an annual rent increase to combat inflation. This can be a fixed percentage (e.g., 3%) or tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Over a long 10-year term, compounding escalations can increase your rent by over 35%.