Putting the Fix On CAM Charges Chain Store Age January 2005

Tenants and shopping center landlords are in a fix when it comes to common-area-maintenance charges.

Merchants are going as far as seeking legal rights to view common-area charges. Drug store giant CVS won a victory in 2003 when a Michigan court ruled that CVS could audit Taubman Centers' fees.

Landlords, on the other side of the table, are forced to lay out huge sums for the audits. Add to that a rough-and-tumble retail market where tenants often have the upper hand and the process of determining CAM charges gets thorny. And, with the expansion of lifestyle centers, some landlords can't charge as much CAM since there are fewer common areas.

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