Glenn S. Demby

Glenn S. Demby, Esq. is the contributing editor of Commercial Lease Law Insider and Fair Housing Coach, published by the Habitat Group. His newsletters have won numerous awards from the National Association of Real Estate Editors and the Specialized Information Publishers Association.

Not Specifying Base Rent Amount May Render Lease Invalid & Unenforceable

Simply having a written lease signed by both the landlord and tenant isn’t enough to satisfy the Statute of Frauds.

May 6, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

Simply having a written lease signed by both the landlord and tenant isn’t enough to satisfy the Statute of Frauds.

FEATURE

Set 8 Ground Rules When Letting Tenants Host Receptions in Their Office Space

Don’t let loud, boisterous events interfere with the professional atmosphere you work so hard to cultivate.

Apr 30, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

CLLI_0525-MLC-Office-Building-Ambience-.pdf

Don’t let loud, boisterous events interfere with the professional atmosphere you work so hard to cultivate. Our Model Lease Clause sets eight parameters for tenant receptions and other events at which a tenant’s use inside the space it leases may disturb or disrupt other tenants in the building, center, or facility.

Negotiating Tips

Limit Your Duty to Re-Let Vacancies When Mitigating Damages of Defaulting Tenant

We give you nine key elements to put in a lease clause that specifically addresses your duty to mitigate.

Apr 29, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

CLLI_0525-MLC-Mitigating-Damages.pdf

The bad news is that you may not be able to completely contract out of your duty to mitigate damages; the good news is that you can limit it. But to do so, you need to add specific language to your lease. Here’s how to draft and negotiate a fair, reasonable, and legally enforceable mitigation of damages limitations clause, along with a Model Lease Clause that you can adapt for your own use.

Landlord Loses

U.S. Government Can Terminate Lease When Premises Become ‘Untenantable’

Apr 29, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

What Happened: The federal government leased two floors of an office in Queens to house the Field Office of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. The 15-year lease included the following clause ...

Landlord Loses

Individual Owners Aren’t Liable for LLC’s Lease Debts

Apr 28, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

What Happened: Tenants, an elementary school operated as a Delaware limited liability company and the husband and wife who owned it, wanted to renew their 10-year lease after it expired. But rather than an extension, the owners insisted on a lease amendment naming the LLC as the only tenant ...

Landlord Loses

Jury Trial Waiver in Guaranty Doesn’t Bind Non-Signatory Tenant

Apr 28, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

What Happened: A landlord got the individual principal of a new restaurant to sign a guaranty of the tenant’s performance of the lease. The guaranty, which the tenant didn’t sign, included a waiver of jury trial clause. Disputes later arose, and the tenant and landlord sued each other for breach of contract ...

May 2025 Coach's Quiz

Apr 23, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

Avoid 8 Discrimination Pitfalls When Setting Rules for Common Use Amenities

Your rules can get you into trouble even when your sole purpose is to ensure the safe and sanitary use of the amenity.

Apr 23, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

Offering the right amenities—like pools, fitness centers, and game rooms—can give you a decisive edge in attracting and retaining tenants. But setting rules for safely using amenities exposes you to risk of liability under fair housing laws, particularly claims of discrimination against f...

Don’t Let Lease Ambiguity Cost You Full Value of Real Estate Tax Abatements

Mar 31, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

Securing a full or partial abatement or exemption on your property’s real estate taxes is a cause for celebration. But that champagne may taste far less sweet if you end up having to share those hard-won benefits with your tenants.

FEATURE

How to Accept Partial Rent Payments Without Waiving Right to Collect Full Amount Owed

Don’t inadvertently grant the tenant a permanent rent cut.

Mar 26, 2025

Glenn S. Demby

CLLI_0425-Model-Letter.pdf

Tenants that are strapped for cash may send a check covering only part of the rent due for that particular month. Such partial rent checks may create a major dilemma for landlords. On the one hand, partial payment is better than no payment at all. The problem is that by accepting a partial payment you may waive your right to collect the balance due. And because waivers are hard to undo, if you make a practice of cashing partial rent checks, you may even be granting the ...

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