An important aspect to consider when it comes to lease abstraction is lease data management. This has 3 key elements. First is the data type and formatting, the second, document management, and the third and final element is document audit.

Data type and formatting

Your lease abstract templates should allow for effective data searching and meaningful reporting. The data in your lease abstracts is useful only when it can be converted into meaningful pieces of information (Knowledge) that you can leverage to arrive at the right business decisions. The right lease abstract acts as a powerful lease reporting tool allowing you to engage in data-driven decision-making in a proactive manner. Data cross-linking, reference, and document tagging are elements that can help you accomplish this goal effectively.

Document management

Effective document management plays a crucial role in helping you stay on top of your lease portfolio. Once your team is ready to actually get started with the lease abstraction project, the first step is document organization. This involves a systematic arrangement of all lease documents including amendments, side letters, estoppels, and even relevant email communications where applicable.

Document audit

The next step in this process is to identify the missing documents and data points that are missing as a result of that. Once the document audit is complete, the next step is to scan and upload the relevant documents onto your lease management system. At this stage, it is recommended that you perform a quality check to ensure the documents are legible and if you have used an OCR (optical character recognition) software to digitize them, then the output is accurate. Also, ensure the documents have the right tags and filters. Having the right tags and filters help by improving document accessibility, so you can find what you are looking for, right when you need it.

You can leverage your lease abstract to its maximum potential by integrating with a lease management software platform. While your lease abstract will mention the key events/dates/numbers to watch out for, the lease management application offers timely access to those critical data points and also ensures you never lose sight of them by tracking these for your consistently and alerting you on time, so you don’t miss any critical timelines.

Rebolease.com, powered by RE BackOffice, Inc., is a premier provider of lease abstraction, administration, audit, and accounting services. Headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, we are a global boutique firm, providing high-quality services to top-tier clients across industry verticals, covering every type of lease and on any lease platform. We are proud to be a trusted partner, for 15+ years, to leading retailers, REITs, property owners/managers, and corporate accounts seeking strategic advantage. All client projects are performed in-house.