How to Audit Your Landlord's CAM Statement (Step-by-Step Guide)
Step-by-step guide to auditing a commercial landlord's CAM reconciliation statement. Catch the 5 most common overcharges, know your audit rights, and dispute effectively.
At the end of each lease year, landlords reconcile estimated CAM payments against actual expenses. If actual expenses exceed estimates, tenants pay a "true-up." If estimates exceeded actuals, tenants receive a credit. This calculator walks through the reconciliation math. After calculating, tenants can verify against their actual reconciliation with <a href="https://www.camaudit.io" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CAMAudit.io</a>. Property managers can automate the process with <a href="https://www.capveri.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CapVeri.com</a>.
CAM True-Up = (Actual CAM Expenses × Tenant Pro-Rata Share) − Monthly CAM Paid
A positive result means you owe additional payment. A negative result means you are owed a credit. Gross-up provisions may adjust actual expenses upward if occupancy was below the contractual threshold (often 90–95%).
| Total Building CAM Expenses (Actual) | $240,000/year |
| Total Rentable Building Area | 50,000 sq ft |
| Tenant Leased Area | 5,000 sq ft |
| Tenant Pro-Rata Share | 10.00% (5,000 ÷ 50,000) |
| Monthly CAM Estimate Paid | $1,900/month ($22,800/year) |
| Building Occupancy During Year | 85% |
Result
Tenant owes $1,200 (base case); $4,024 if lease has 95% gross-up provision
Tenant's Share of Actual CAM
$24,000/year
$240,000 × 10.00%
CAM Estimated Already Paid
$22,800/year
$1,900 × 12
Base True-Up (no gross-up)
$1,200 owed
$24,000 − $22,800
Grossed-Up CAM (95% threshold)
$268,235/year
$240,000 ÷ 85% × 95%
Tenant's Share (Grossed-Up)
$26,824/year
$268,235 × 10.00%
True-Up with Gross-Up
$4,024 owed
$26,824 − $22,800
| Line Item | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Tenant's Share of Actual CAM | $24,000/year | $240,000 × 10.00% |
| CAM Estimated Already Paid | $22,800/year | $1,900 × 12 |
| Base True-Up (no gross-up) | $1,200 owed | $24,000 − $22,800 |
| Grossed-Up CAM (95% threshold) | $268,235/year | $240,000 ÷ 85% × 95% |
| Tenant's Share (Grossed-Up) | $26,824/year | $268,235 × 10.00% |
| True-Up with Gross-Up | $4,024 owed | $26,824 − $22,800 |
Total actual building CAM expenses for the year
Amount you paid each month during the year
Average occupancy during the year (affects gross-up)
The occupancy % in your lease for gross-up. Use 0 if no gross-up.
Result
You owe $1,200 ($4,024 with gross-up)
| Line Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Tenant Pro-Rata Share5,000 ÷ 50,000 | 10.00% |
| Tenant Share of Actual CAM$240,000 × 10.00% | $24,000 |
| Annual Estimates Paid$1,900/mo × 12 | $22,800 |
| Base True-Uppositive = you owe | $1,200 |
| Grossed-Up CAM (95% threshold)$240,000 ÷ 85% × 95% | $268,235 |
| Tenant Share (Grossed-Up)$268,235 × 10.00% | $26,824 |
| True-Up with Gross-Uppositive = you owe | $4,024 |
Save this calculation
Get this result emailed to you - no account required.
CAM reconciliation is the annual process by which landlords compare actual common area maintenance (CAM) expenses against the estimated payments tenants made throughout the year. If actual expenses exceeded estimates, the tenant pays a true-up. If estimates exceeded actuals, the tenant receives a credit or carryforward.
A gross-up provision allows the landlord to adjust CAM expenses as if the building were at full occupancy (typically 90–95%) when calculating tenant expense shares. This prevents tenants from benefiting from low-occupancy years when variable expenses like utilities and cleaning are artificially low.
Tenants with audit rights can request the landlord's supporting expense documentation within the window specified in the lease (typically 30–90 days after receiving the reconciliation). Common errors include inclusion of excluded expense categories, incorrect pro-rata share calculations, and capital expenditure misclassification as operating expenses.
Step-by-step guide to auditing a commercial landlord's CAM reconciliation statement. Catch the 5 most common overcharges, know your audit rights, and dispute effectively.
Your landlord's annual CAM reconciliation statement can include errors and inflated charges. Learn how to read every line item, what the gross-up provision means, and what to challenge.
CAM reconciliation compares estimated vs. actual operating expenses in NNN leases. Learn the timeline, how to read a statement, common errors, and how to dispute overcharges.
Need CAM recovery under your brand?
CAMAudit gives firms white-label CAM recovery infrastructure while they keep the client relationship and deliver branded reports.
Explore the partner program →Lextract pulls rent amounts, escalation schedules, CAM caps, pro-rata share, and 120+ more fields from any commercial lease PDF in minutes. Just $15 per lease.
Upload Your Lease