Archive for September, 2011
Legal Rights Versus Practical Rights
By Christopher Huntley, Attorney
A well written lease should have a comprehensive and aggressive remedies section in favor of the landlord. The landlord’s rights should include the right to collect both past due and future rents, the right to re-enter the premises and relet it to another tenant, the right to terminate the lease, and the right to collect all damages incurred in connection with the tenant’s default. These rights will put the landlord in a position to recoup its losses and be made whole in the event that the tenant does not live up to its obligations under the lease…if the landlord can exercise its rights. There is a difference between the legal rights granted to the landlord in a legal document, and the practical rights that the landlord will actually have if a dispute arises or if a tenant defaults. The former is worthless if the latter does not exist.
Cost of Litigation
The first, and usually the largest, hurdle to overcome in a dispute with a tenant is the cost of the litigation. The old adage that the only ones who truly win in a legal dispute are the lawyers is very true when it comes to lease disputes as the legal costs that the landlord incurs can greatly outweigh the damages that the landlord will receive. If a landlord is lucky, it has included language in its lease that states that the prevailing party can collect its legal fees from the other party. This right, however, is also a double-edged sword as a landlord may lose and end up with not only having to pay damages to its tenant, but also both the landlord’s and the tenant’s legal fees. This is a risky proposition.
Let’s consider the actual costs. (more…)
Thank you, Survivor’s Party Sponsors!
The Special Events Committee would like to thank all the generous sponsors from the Survivor’s Party at Kieran’s. We appreciate your support of NAIOP Minnesota survivors!
Thriller!
Terra General Contractors
Brat Packers
Art Partners Group
BDH & Young Space Design
CB Richard Ellis
RJM Construction
Shannon Van Gemert Receives NAIOP 2011 Developing Leaders Award
NAIOP Minnesota member Shannon Van Gemert has been named as one of the recipients of the 2011 Developing Leaders Award, presented by NAIOP, the Commercial Real Estate Development Association.
Van Gemert is a senior production analyst with CBRE Capital Markets in St. Paul and holds a Masters in Real Estate and Urban Land Economics from the University of Wisconsin.
Her NAIOP involvement includes chairing NAIOP Minnesota’s University Challenge Committee in addition to participating on the chapter’s Developing Leaders Committee. She also demonstrates her commitment to the growth of the industry by mentoring university students in the University of Wisconsin’s Real Estate Program. Van Gemert also volunteers her time and efforts to her community through Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Minneapolis.
NAIOP President and CEO Thomas J. Bisacquino spoke of the importance of the Developing Leaders Award, stating, “The Developing Leaders program recognizes the vital roles that the young visionaries of our industry play in commercial real estate today and encourages diversity and professional growth among these outstanding professionals who will lead commercial real estate into the future.”
Recipients of NAIOP’s Developing Leaders Award will be celebrated at Development ’11: The Annual Meeting for Commercial Real Estate, where they will benefit from unique networking opportunities and publicity surrounding the award. Development ’11, which takes place October 18-20 in Scottsdale, Ariz., features three days of industry education, information sharing and events aimed at ensuring that NAIOP members have the most up-to-date information on industry trends, best practices and business strategies to achieve success.
Congratulations Shannon!
Local view: Share government spending information with taxpayers
“I realize property taxes are essential in delivering the local services we all need and want. I also fully recognize the serious nature of our city’s financial problems and the need to find ways to solve them. But our year-after-year increases in property taxes when property values, both commercial and residential, continue to fall, frankly, baffle me. As a taxpayer, I find it increasingly difficult to find out what these higher tax payments are actually buying for Duluth’s residents. Without having that information, it’s becoming harder and harder to sympathize with local officials when they call for even more revenue because of higher costs, even though inflation is flat and has been for several years.”
Bill Wilson of Duluth is an investor and the owner of several commercial properties.
Duluth News Tribune, September 4, 2011
More useful government spending reports needed
“To intelligently cope with the influence of spending on property taxes, taxpayers must be able to quickly and easily understand the cost drivers behind local government spending. Financial reporting by object code would provide greater spending transparency for taxpayers.”
Dee Schutte is the executive director of the Litchfield Chamber of Commerce.
Crow River Business, September 2011 edition
Random Rants: What you say and what you mean
Insure you’re words our write … Ensure your words are right
You don’t have to be a full-fledged word nerd but understanding some word use basics is not only helpful but a way to avoid embarrassment. Here is a random list of common misuses. How many have you heard used incorrectly?
among or between
between introduces two items, and among introduces more than two
anxious vs. eager
Anxious is not a synonym for eager. A good reminder is the connection between anxious and anxiety, which means worried or distressed.
asterisk
many times said as asterik
egg yolk
sometimes heard in the Midwest as egg yoke
enormity
extreme evil not enormousness (more…)
