Commercial lease agreement template
A commercial lease is a different animal from a residential one. Fewer laws protect the tenant, so almost everything that matters, from who fixes the HVAC to what happens if the business fails, is decided by the words on the page. This template is written to be fair to both sides for a small office, retail or flex space: plain enough to read in one sitting, with blanks for the numbers you'll negotiate.
Updated November 5, 2026 · 4 min read
The contract
Gray blanks are yours to fill in before you send. Each signer fills in the blanks in their color.
- You, before sending
- Tenant
- Landlord
Commercial Lease Agreement
This Commercial Lease Agreement (the "Lease") is made on Lease date between Landlord name (the "Landlord") and Tenant business name, a Tenant entity type and state (the "Tenant").
1. Premises
The Landlord leases to the Tenant the space known as Suite or unit in the building at Building address, containing about Rentable square feet rentable square feet (the "Premises"), together with the non-exclusive right to use the building's common areas, such as entrances, hallways, restrooms and parking, as the Landlord designates them. Parking rights: Parking rights.
2. Permitted use
The Tenant will use the Premises only for Permitted use and related office purposes, and for no other purpose without the Landlord's written consent. The Tenant is responsible for getting the business licenses and permits its use requires. The Landlord makes no promise that zoning allows the Tenant's particular use beyond what is stated here: Zoning or use confirmation.
3. Term
The Lease term starts on Commencement date and ends on Expiration date. If the Landlord can't deliver the Premises on the commencement date, rent doesn't start until it does, and the Tenant may cancel this Lease if delivery is more than Delivery delay limit in days days late.
4. Base rent
The Tenant will pay base rent of Monthly base rent a month, in advance, on the first day of each month, starting on Rent start date. Base rent increases by Annual rent increase on each anniversary of the commencement date. Rent for a partial month is prorated. Rent more than Days late before late charge days late carries a late charge of Late charge.
5. Operating expenses, taxes and insurance
This Lease is a Lease type lease (gross, modified gross or triple net). In addition to base rent, the Tenant will pay Tenant's share of expenses percent of the building's real estate taxes, the Landlord's property insurance and common area operating costs, Which expenses the tenant shares, paid in monthly estimates with a yearly reconciliation. The Landlord will give the Tenant a statement of actual costs each year, and the Tenant may review the Landlord's records for that year on reasonable notice.
6. Security deposit
The Tenant pays a security deposit of Security deposit when signing. The Landlord may use it to cure a Tenant default, and the Tenant will restore it within ten days. The unused deposit is returned within Days to return deposit days after the Lease ends and the Tenant has vacated.
7. Utilities
The Tenant pays for these utilities and services to the Premises: Utilities paid by tenant. The Landlord provides: Utilities provided by landlord.
8. Repairs and maintenance
The Landlord maintains the roof, foundation, structural walls, and the common areas, and the building systems serving more than one tenant. The Tenant maintains the interior of the Premises in good condition, including doors, glass, interior walls, fixtures and Systems the tenant maintains, and repairs damage caused by its employees or visitors. Each party makes its repairs within a reasonable time after notice.
9. Improvements and alterations
Before the commencement date, the Landlord will complete this work: Landlord's work. The Landlord will contribute a tenant improvement allowance of Improvement allowance toward the Tenant's approved work. The Tenant won't make structural changes, or other alterations costing more than Alteration consent threshold, without the Landlord's written consent, which won't be unreasonably withheld. Signs need the Landlord's approval and must follow local sign rules.
10. Insurance and indemnity
The Tenant will carry commercial general liability insurance of at least Liability insurance minimum per occurrence, naming the Landlord as an additional insured, and property insurance on its own fixtures and equipment, and will give the Landlord certificates on request. The Landlord will insure the building. Each party will indemnify the other against claims arising from its own negligence or breach of this Lease, and each waives claims against the other to the extent covered by its property insurance.
11. Assignment and subletting
The Tenant may not assign this Lease or sublet the Premises without the Landlord's written consent, which won't be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed. The Tenant remains liable under this Lease after any assignment or sublease unless the Landlord releases it in writing.
12. Default
The Tenant is in default if it fails to pay rent within Days to cure late rent days after written notice, or fails to fix any other breach within Days to cure other breach days after written notice (or longer, if the breach can't reasonably be fixed in that time and the Tenant is diligently working on it). On default, the Landlord may end this Lease and recover the rent and damages the law allows, using only the legal process the law requires, and must make reasonable efforts to re-let the Premises where the law requires it.
13. Renewal, holdover and surrender
If the Tenant isn't in default, it may renew this Lease for Renewal option by giving written notice at least Days of notice to renew days before the Lease ends, at a rent the parties agree in writing. If the Tenant stays after the Lease ends without a renewal, it is a month-to-month tenant at Holdover rent percentage percent of the last base rent. At the end, the Tenant will leave the Premises broom-clean, remove its trade fixtures and repair damage from their removal.
14. Access, casualty and condemnation
The Landlord may enter the Premises on reasonable notice to inspect, repair or show them, and at any time in an emergency. If fire or another casualty makes the Premises unusable, rent abates for the unusable part until it is restored, and either party may end this Lease if restoration will take more than Days to restore after casualty days. If the Premises are taken by eminent domain, this Lease ends on the date of taking.
15. General
Notices go to the addresses below, by hand, by recognized courier, or by email with a copy by one of the other methods. This Lease is governed by the laws of the state of State. It is the whole agreement between the parties, can be changed only in writing signed by both, and binds their successors. If any part is unenforceable, the rest remains. Electronic signatures count as original signatures.
Notice addresses
Landlord: Landlord notice address
Tenant: Tenant notice address Email: Tenant notice email Signer's title: Tenant signer's title
I am authorized to sign this Lease for the Tenant business named above.
Tenant, by its authorized signer
Landlord
Opens it in SignMaster as a template you can edit and send.
A starting point, not legal advice. Have a lawyer review it for your state and situation.
On this page
How commercial leases differ
Residential tenants get deposit caps, habitability rules and set notice periods from state law. Commercial tenants mostly get what they negotiate. That's why commercial leases spell out things a home lease never mentions: the permitted use, the share of property taxes the tenant pays, who carries which insurance, and whether the landlord can refuse a sublease.
The biggest choice is the cost structure. In a gross lease, the tenant pays one rent and the landlord pays the building's taxes, insurance and upkeep. In a triple net (NNN) lease, the tenant pays base rent plus its share of all three. A modified gross lease splits them. Section 5 of the template names the type and the tenant's percentage, so both sides know the real monthly cost.
What the template covers
- Premises and use: suite, address, rentable square feet, common areas and parking, and the one business use allowed.
- Term: commencement and expiration dates, with a right to cancel if the landlord can't deliver the space.
- Rent: monthly base rent, an annual increase, proration and a late charge.
- Operating costs: gross, modified gross or NNN, the tenant's share, monthly estimates and a yearly reconciliation the tenant can audit.
- Deposit and utilities: the deposit and its return, and which utilities each side pays.
- Repairs and improvements: landlord keeps the structure and common areas, tenant the interior; landlord's work, an improvement allowance and consent for alterations.
- Insurance and indemnity: liability limits, additional insured status and a mutual waiver for insured losses.
- Assignment, default and renewal: consent not unreasonably withheld, notice and cure periods, a renewal option and holdover rent.
Mistakes that get expensive
- Signing "NNN" without a cap or an audit right. Pass-through costs can rise faster than rent; the template gives the tenant a yearly statement and the right to review it.
- A permitted use that's too narrow. "Coffee shop" may block selling sandwiches. Describe the business as it might grow.
- No date for the landlord's work. If the build-out runs late, rent shouldn't start, and the tenant needs a way out.
- Ignoring the personal guaranty. Many landlords ask small-business owners to guarantee the lease personally. Negotiate a cap or a burn-off after a few years of on-time rent.
- Assuming the zoning works. Confirm with the city that your use is allowed at that address before you sign, not after you've ordered equipment.
Need a guarantor?
If the landlord wants a personal guaranty, add a guarantor as another signer and attach the guaranty in the same envelope, so the lease and the guaranty are signed together and carry the same certificate.
How to send it with SignMaster
- 1
Start from the template
Choose Use this template. The lease lands in your SignMaster templates with the tenant business and the landlord as signers.
- 2
Enter the negotiated terms
Fill in the gray blanks from your letter of intent: suite, square feet, use, dates, rent and escalation, lease type and share, deposit, allowance, insurance limits, cure periods and renewal terms.
- 3
Send to the tenant's signer
Address it to the person authorized to sign for the business. They enter the legal entity name, its state, the notice address and their title, and confirm their authority before signing.
- 4
Protect the document
For a lease with sensitive numbers, require an access code emailed to the signer before it opens.
- 5
Countersign and file
You sign last. Both sides get the signed PDF, sealed with a SHA-256 fingerprint and a certificate of completion, so any later edit to the file would show.
Many tenants, one form
Owners of strip centers and flex parks often use one lease form for every bay, changing only the suite, size and rent. When renewals or a form update land at the same time, bulk send sends each tenant their own lease from a spreadsheet whose columns match the gray blanks, like Suite or unit, Rentable square feet and Monthly base rent. Save it as CSV UTF-8 from Excel first. For one-off deals, send from the template one tenant at a time.
Questions? Answers.
What's the difference between a gross and a triple net lease?
In a gross lease, the rent covers the building's taxes, insurance and maintenance. In a triple net lease, the tenant pays base rent plus its share of all three. A modified gross lease splits them in a way the lease spells out.
Can a commercial lease be signed electronically?
Yes. Commercial leases are ordinary contracts, and e-signatures are valid for them under federal and state law. If you want to record a memorandum of a long lease with the county, that usually needs a notarized signature. Read can you e-sign a property deed for how recording works.
Who should sign for a business tenant?
An officer, manager or member with authority to bind the company, signing in the company's name. The template asks for the entity type and the signer's title and has them confirm their authority.
What is a tenant improvement allowance?
Money the landlord puts toward building out the space for the tenant, such as walls, flooring, lighting or wiring. Section 9 sets the amount. Agree in writing whether it's paid to contractors directly or reimbursed against invoices, and by when the work must be done.