Investor Encyclopedia

Gross Lease

Gross Lease: a practical Canadian real estate investor guide to underwriting use, deal risk, common traps, and Realist.ca implementation.

Definition

Gross Lease is a real estate term investors use to assess operating economics, lease risk, recurring costs, tenant allocation of expenses, and how cleanly income converts to owner cash flow.

Formula

Gross lease owner NOI = rent collected - owner-paid taxes, insurance, maintenance, utilities, CAM, management, vacancy, and reserves.

Example

An investor reviewing a Canadian property tags gross lease as a diligence item, links it to the lease or management contract, and reruns the model if it changes rent, recoveries, fees, downtime, capex, or exit value.

Why It Matters

Gross Lease matters because it changes NOI durability, tenant friction, recoverable costs, vacancy risk, and the quality of the income stream. The mistake is treating lease wording as boilerplate when it is really deal math.

Investor Interpretation

Use gross lease as a decision filter: if the cost allocation, fee drag, recoveries, or responsibilities cannot be verified, price the uncertainty with a larger reserve, tighter condition, lower offer, or walk-away.

Realist Tie-In

Realist.ca can make Gross Lease searchable, connect it to related guides, attach it to saved deal analyses, and surface the right checklist/calculator beside listings, underwriting pages, and investor lead magnets.