Landowners across the U.S. are contacted on a daily basis by their cell tower tenants seeking to extend their current cell tower lease agreements. Many times the landlord is contacted to extend their cell tower lease years before the agreement expires. This is a planned tactic carried out by the cell tower giants, as this way they can secure the best deal for themselves, not the landlord. Every landlord needs to look out for several factors before signing an agreement to extend. Some common important issues to consider when negotiating a cell tower lease extension are: finding out fair market rent rather than current rental payment, the effect on overall property value, potential revenue sharing, as well as finding out the likelihood that the tenant will relocate their tower.
The decision a landowner makes today as it relates to an extension of its current lease may mean hundreds of thousands of dollars over the life of the cell tower lease, as a few hundred dollars more a month means a lot when paid over 10, 20, or more years. The cell tower companies, as much as they would like you to believe otherwise, are not on your side, nor will they look out for your best interest, as their primary interest is to get the best deal for their company, not for you. Their first concern is their bottom line, shouldn’t yours be as well?