Cell tower lease rate (rent) is only one sentence in a 30-page lease contract. Rent escalation is another short sentence in the lease. When property owners are overly focused on these two terms, they overlook a few other ways to make more money in a cell tower lease agreement beyond rent. Wireless carriers will often low-ball the rent amount, expecting property owners to counter at a higher rate. Too high of a counter, and the carrier moves on to the neighboring properties. Too low of a counter and the owners are underpaid for the next 40 years. Without knowing, property owners negotiate blindly while the carriers walked away with favorable terms.
Terabonne takes a data-driven approach. We evaluate the cell tower’s value to the system based on various criteria that initiated the Search RingsGeographical areas depicted in a circle (ring) drawn by radio frequency (RF) engineers defining the areas requiring new cell towers and technical parameters surrounding such designs.. After the evaluation, we compare the site’s value against all other sites with similar characteristics to determine the upper limit rent. Lastly, having identified similar sites’ correct rents, we use the facts and data supporting our term requirements. This method puts our clients on a level playing field, and does not require guessing the site’s value. However, this low-balling ploy by the carriers is only one of the many tricks up their sleeves.
Since Terabonne has been negotiating leases and working with wireless carriers for decades, we have developed and refined our own solutions to all the carriers’ tactics. It is worth repeating that the wireless industry and the processes it requires are complex and tedious. Finding the right consultant who can produce tangible results is a make-or-break decision of whether or not a landlord will profit from their land while maintaining their property rights. Making the right decision requires landlords to sift through consultants who inflate their experience and those who believe the pages of the lease is all that’s needed. The truth is that the wireless industry is very high tech and requires negotiations throughout the project, well beyond the lease. That is why Terabonne believes every property owner looking to maximize their cell tower lease opportunity should always be on a level playing field with the multi-billion dollar wireless carriers. This is where Terabonne shines for our clients.