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| Q1. |
Why do I need a Lease Administration system? |
| A1. |
There are as many reasons as you will see in our list of services and benefits. The most important reasons are (1) the dramatic improvement in the control of lease-related information so that critical dates are known and dollar obligation amounts are verified, and (2) the opportunity to reduce costs. |
| Q2. |
Can you save me any money? |
| A2. |
Yes, we are confident that you can achieve real cost savings while also gaining improved access to critical lease-related data. There is no cost for development and maintenance of our database software. CLAS, LLC. provides the finest professional lease administration services, allowing you to re-allocate your personnel to other tasks. CLAS professionals serve as your staff at part time costs. |
| Q3. |
My current way of administrating leases is doing well. |
| A3. |
Many companies whose core business is not related to real estate can sometimes underestimate the complexities of managing a real estate portfolio. Critical dates must be known for exercising options. Exact amounts of rent and additional nt must be determined by comparing multiple sources of data. Landlord expense recoveries must be scrutinized for accuracy and trueness to the wording of the lease. |
| Q4. |
My Excel spreadsheets tell me everything I need know, like expiration date, options, rent schedules, etc. Why do I need a database? |
| A4. |
A database is clearly a superior way to organize lease related data. Only a database can display relationships of information in the form of reports that make lease administration quicker, easier, faster to update, and much more comprehensive. It is much more efficient to "query" a database to find specific leases that meet your customized search criteria. It is all about improving your ability to control and access information. |
| Q5. |
Why do I need to have my lease information/data on a website? |
| A5. |
A web-enabled database is the ultimate in database lease administration management. Your data is organized and displayed 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. Your data can be viewed anywhere in the world where you have a phone line or cable connection to the web. For example, if you would like your associates in other cities to view the same data at the same time you view it, the web is a perfect solution. |
| Q6. |
I am concerned about my data being secure. |
| A6. |
There are up to 3 levels of security that can be implemented. The first, and most common, level is that of username/password for the database application. The second level, which gives much higher security, is the use of username/password for entry into the operating system prior to entry into the application. The third and highest level of security is to purchase "secure location" software (Encryption Software) that scrambles the text as it is in transit, then unscrambles it on your workstation PC.
All data is backed up the moment each change is made to the database in an offsite location, so that any chance of losing data is reduced to near nil. |
| Q7. |
Yes, but I am also very concerned about my data being kept private. |
| A7. |
We consider the privacy of your data to be of utmost importance.
We are concerned about the integrity of your lease data, and only want to serve your lease administration needs. Lease Administration is not just our core business; it is our only business.
Our system has been designed so that you can grant access to your data on different levels. Not everyone has to see every lease.
Furthermore, our system has been developed so that data traveling from your office or ours to our servers and back is encrypted as demonstrated by our GeoTrust SSL Certificate so that there is no chance that data could become intercepted or compromised.
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| Q8. |
Why should I pay you to abstract my leases when I just had them done by someone else just last year? |
| A8. |
There are 3 reasons: First, there can be no assurances made by us that prior abstraction was done with our level of accuracy and integrity. Second, our database is extremely comprehensive; it is possible that prior abstracting did not capture sufficient data for us to present in our database. Third, Real Estate Leases are dynamic; it is very possible that some of the terms and conditions have changed. |
| Q9. |
I can't afford to have a service like yours. |
| A9. |
If you have a real estate portfolio of at least 20 locations or more, you need to have your data organized into a database for reasons explained above, and you need to have one or more commercial real estate lease knowledgeable employees on board. (If you do not have such a person or persons in your employ, chances are that you will have to rely on the information furnished by your Landlord or broker.) As an example, if your company has 50 leased locations we can maintain your entire portfolio, including all updates to all leases on a continuing basis, for less than 50% of what you would pay an entry level clerical person. How can you not afford us? |
| Q10. |
Do you carry insurance? Are you licensed? |
| A10. |
Yes. Keep in mind that there is no such thing as perfection. We will do everything in our power to maintain the highest level of accuracy, but in some situations Commercial Lease language can be vague or difficult to abstract. (As part of our service we will alert you to situations where lease language is not clear.) We are Real Estate licensed and are covered by Real Estate standard "Errors and Omissions" insurance. |
| Q11. |
Do you carry insurance? Are you licensed? |
| A11. |
You are headed in the right direction, but consider that our service does not remove control from your department. Also, consider these possible situations with regard to purchasing a software package. Some software packages are very large and do not perform a comprehensive job for lease administration. Some software packages are excessively large and complex in order to accommodate "all possible client needs and sizes". Most software packages are expensive and require considerable training (and cross-training) of your personnel. Most software packages require additional money for"license renewals" and "upgrades". And after spending all that money, you still need to have a real estate lease knowledgeable staff to abstract into it and maintain it.
We charge nothing for software; nothing for software upgrades of a generic nature; nothing for annual license renewals; and nothing for the minimal training required.
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| Q12. |
Can you customize your reports for me? |
| A12. |
Yes. Every client has unique needs. There is no way to know in advance of all requirements in advance. That is why we developed our software on the most flexible platform so that additional reports can be added quickly and with a minimum of additional cost. |
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