Lease optimization companies are entities that were formed to negotiate better leases for the parties they represent (typically, tower owners and wireless carriers). Please note that Steel in the Air is not affiliated with any of these companies. Steel in the Air is similar to a lease optimization company, but as we like to say: “We play for the home team.” We work exclusively for the LESSOR (e.g., private and public landowners, and municipal governments) in negotiations against telecom companies (the LESSEE). For more information on Steel in the Air’s services, please see: Who We Serve, What We Do and Advantages.
We have provided contact information, including web addresses for each of the companies in case you have found our website in error while searching for these companies.
VISIT THEIR WEBSITE: WWW.BLACKDOTWIRELESS.COM
Historically, Black Dot has worked for AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon and US Cellular. These inquiries take the following format:
In some cases, Black Dot will offer a nominal increase in the lease rate in exchange for an extension of the lease duration. However, we caution all landowners who are approached by Black Dot on behalf of a wireless carrier to be wary of any proposed changes. These proposals (even the ones that increase the lease rate) almost always attempt to encourage the landowner to sign an undervalued lease extension or to agree to terms that could materially reduce the value of the site.
If you have received an offer from Black Dot, please forward it to us. We will review it at no charge and either recommend that you do nothing (decline to make changes) or (provided that we believe we can help) we will quote you a cost for our services.
VISIT THEIR WEBSITE: WWW.MD7.COM
If you have been contacted by Md7 regarding your AT&T or Sprint lease and have been asked to sign an amendment with little to no compensation, we advise you proceed with caution. You may be entitled to additional compensation for those modifications.
With the increasing chatter regarding the Sprint/T-Mobile merger, Md7 representatives try to suggest that by doing a deal now, you can reduce the possibility of termination of your lease under a merger. In our opinion, unless they are willing to remove termination rights in the lease for at least seven years, these offers may not be worth considering unless you have a high rent.
Please reach out to us and we will gladly review your lease and the proposal at no cost and then let you know whether you need our services further and if so, how much they will cost.
VISIT THEIR WEBSITE WWW.SMARTLINKLLC.COM
In the early part of 2017, we have started to see Smartlink contacting landowners with offers to renegotiate the terms of AT&T leases. Smartlink alleges that the landowner’s cell-site lease is under review in AT&T’s “TOSS” program- which is likely just a catchy acronym intended to suggest to landowners that their site will be “tossed” if the landowner does not agree to the revised terms.
Like the other lease optimization entities above, Smartlink is likely compensated based on a success fee for encouraging landowners to renegotiate. We have not seen enough of their offers to know whether Smartlink is targeting higher-paid rent leases or just a random sample of leases.
Either way, if you have received an offer from Smartlink on behalf of AT&T, please feel free to forward it to us. We will review it and let you know whether you should reject the offer, consider it, or whether we should do a review to evaluate the risk to your site if you choose not to accept the revised terms.
VISIT THEIR WEBSITE: WWW.LYLECO.COM
Regardless of why an agent from Lyle Company is contacting you, they are always seeking to procure the best value for Crown Castle. They have amassed a substantial amount of data and information on their side. They know how much the tower is worth to Crown, how much leeway they have in negotiations, and what other options are available to Crown. You should too, and that is where we come in. We help level the playing field by assisting you with optimizing your lease extension or lease buyout, if that is in fact what you want to do.
Requests to reduce monthly lease payments are typically but not always detrimental to your bottom line. It is important to look at the terms of the lease holistically. In some cases, if your lease is too high, there is a possibility that the tenant could relocate the tower.
Steel in the Air prides itself on accurate, ethical, data-driven analyses. Some other websites and cellular consultants have accurate data, but skewed advice (due to self-serving motivations), while others have honest intentions yet biased data. Steel in the Air has the best of both worlds. You can depend on us. Just ask our clients.
