It’s important, I think, to hire both professionals during a transaction. Each party brings a different skillset to the table. A licensed Florida attorney is there to represent you and watch out for your legal interests. A real estate agent has expertise when it comes to the market itself, but a real estate agent does not necessarily have fiduciary duties to where they have to keep your best interest in heart at all times. An experienced Florida real estate attorney can assist you in this process, working together with your agent to bring about the best result.

Letters of intent are typically used in commercial real estate transactions in Florida. There’s nothing preventing you from using a letter of intent in a residential transaction but it’s not typically used. A letter of intent is a non-binding letter which essentially outlines the main deal points in a transaction and that the parties will move forward trying to negotiate the terms of an actual contract.

CAM charges, or common area maintenance charges, are typically part of a retail or a strip center lease. They cover the landlord’s parking lot maintenance, maintenance of the overall grounds. Typically, as the tenant, you’ll pay your pro rata or percentage share based on the amount of space you occupy versus the space in the total project.

Every real estate transaction has closing costs. Those are costs, fees, taxes that are in addition to the sales price. A licensed Florida attorney can advise you on whether or not you’re paying the proper closing costs or whether the other party’s trying to shift some traditional closing costs onto you.

Contingencies are parts of a contract. Lawyers often refer to them as conditions proceeding, which are things that must occur for the closing to move forward. For instance, the buyer may have an inspection contingency and may have a certain number of days to inspect the property or they don’t like the inspection results and may be able to back out of the contract. Another common contingency is the financing contingency where the buyer has a certain amount of time to obtain financing or they don’t have to follow through and close on the deal. It’s important to consult with an experienced attorney that can tell you, as the seller or the buyer, what contingencies are necessary or which contingencies may not be in your favor that you want to negotiate out of the contract.

How long your lease is is greatly determined by your individual situation. There are benefits to signing a long-term lease, including a reduced rent and not having to move in the future, but you also must consider whether or not your business is going to outgrow its space. It’s important to consult with an experienced Florida attorney that can help you determine whether a short-term or a long-term lease are in your company’s best interests.

It’s important to start with talking to a licensed, experienced commercial real estate attorney and also an experienced commercial real estate agent. It’s important to assess what type of space you need, how much space you need, and what part of town you need it in. An agent and an attorney working together can represent your best interests and help you on a smooth transition in your new business.

It depends. If you’re transferring the property to wholly owned subsidiary and literally nothing is changing in terms of the beneficial interest of the property, meaning you will still be the person that owns it after the transfer, then there is likely an exemption that you do not have to pay the documentary stamp tax on the deed.

It is very important to consider an environmental site assessment when you’re purchasing commercial real estate. There are many things to take into account including what the property has been used for in the past. If you’re obtaining financing, likely, the bank will require you to at least do a phase one environmental study to determine if there are any issues or anything that needs to be explored further.

Absolutely, in my opinion, the attorney and the broker play two separate roles in the transaction. A broker comes with the experience of real estate transactions in general, but you need an attorney to make sure that you’re covered on the legal side, that you’re meeting the deadlines and that you’ve incorporated everything into the contract that’s necessary to protect you.