Lost a lease deal because I missed a zoning deadline

I was working on a lease for a new coffee shop in downtown Portland and completely spaced on a 30 day zoning variance filing. Landlord found out the tenant's buildout couldn't happen without it and pulled the whole deal. Has anyone else had a small admin slip cost them a big commission?

3 comments

3 Comments

eva24311d ago

Did you try reaching back out to the landlord after fixing the filing? I messed up a similar deadline on a warehouse lease last year, and I was sure the deal was dead. But I sent the landlord a quick email explaining my mistake and offered to pay for the rush filing myself. It cost me a couple hundred bucks but saved the whole commission in the end. Sometimes they just want to see you take responsibility and fix it fast. Might be worth a shot if the tenant is still interested.

lucas6311d ago

Yeah, that's pretty much what I did too. I just owned up to it and offered to cover the extra cost, and the landlord came around.

evaperez7d agoTop Commenter

Oh, I actually heard a lawyer on a podcast say that landlords often prefer someone who owns up to a mistake over someone who seems perfect on paper. It's funny how honesty can be the better business move in those situations.