How to Evaluate Cell Tower Lease Buyout Offers from TowerPoint
TowerPoint is one of many cell tower lease buyout companies. These companies, also known as aggregators, acquire leases from landowners and building owners. TowerPoint proclaims themselves as the “#1 Acquirer of Cell Site Easements.”
They purchase easements under cell tower leases and rooftop cell site leases. If you have accidentally come to this page while searching for TowerPoint, their website can be found at www.towerpoint.com.
Why Is TowerPoint Contacting Me?
More than likely, they have determined that you have a cell tower lease on your property or lease your rooftop to wireless carriers, and they want to buy it. Alternatively, if you own a cell tower, they may be contacting you to make an offer to buy your tower.
Some people incorrectly equate small cells with 5G cell towers. Small cells are antennas placed on utility poles or light poles and are rarely placed on a cell tower. Small cells are smaller (25 cubic feet or less) and cover less area – typically less than ½ mile in diameter. Small cells may be 4G or 5G, but they aren’t towers. Because small cells typically reside on shorter structures (50′ or less) and are deployed in suburban and urban areas, they are almost always closer to people and their residences than 5G cell towers. This proximity makes them certainly more contentious. It is important to note that the FCC has removed city and state authority to limit the placement of small cells in the public right of way except in situations where they impede traffic or cause unsafe conditions (not related to radio frequency waves).
In this article’s context, we will focus solely on 5G equipment on cell towers, not 5G equipment on small cells. If you want more information about small cells, please see our page on small cells or see our blog content on small cell-related articles (there is a lot).
Should I Sell My Lease/Tower to TowerPoint?
Possibly. TowerPoint can make compelling offers for cell phone tower leases and towers. Their easement agreements are straightforward, and historically, they have been easy to work with.
Whether you should sell your lease depends on your objectives with the site and property. Despite what you may hear, most cell tower leases are unlikely to be terminated soon. Note that this applies to “most” leases; a small subset might be more at risk of termination. If you knew your lease was likely to be terminated, selling it would be a consideration. Other reasons to sell include planning to sell your property soon or needing capital for other projects or needs.
As to whether you should sell your lease to TowerPoint specifically, that’s a different question. Our experience suggests that most lease buyout companies are similar, though some may be more challenging to work with or have more onerous contracts. Generally, they all operate in a fairly similar manner. Would you sell your house to the first person who made an unsolicited offer? Unlikely. Similarly, with your cell tower lease, engaging a broker and seeking the best offers for comparison is a wise approach.
How Can Steel in the Air Assist You in Evaluating a TowerPoint Lease Buyout Offer?
Firstly, we can help determine if selling is the right decision for you. If you prefer to receive rent and there is limited risk of lease termination, keeping the lease might be more beneficial. If your lease is set to expire in the next 10 years, negotiating your own lease extension could be more advantageous than selling.
We can review and assess any risks associated with your lease and its potential upside at expiration or earlier. We provide information about the market for these leases and, importantly, determine the fair market value of your lease. With over 20 years in business, we have extensive experience working with landowners on lease agreements. We have tracked thousands of lease buyout offers and understand the value of leases, both historically and presently. We can even provide future value estimates, a service TowerPoint doesn’t offer.
Can You Get Me a Better Offer?
If you’re considering selling and unsure about TowerPoint’s offer, reach out to us. We will evaluate their offer and your lease. If it’s a great offer, we’ll tell you at no charge, and you can proceed with the sale. However, if we believe the offer can be improved, we can broker the lease for you. In most cases, we guarantee that if we can’t beat their offer by at least our fee, you won’t owe us anything.
Unlike other consultants, we don’t buy leases, nor do we take compensation from both the buyer and the seller. We won’t option your lease only to sell it to a higher bidder later. Working with us ensures that our loyalty is solely to you, aiming to secure the best deal with the best terms to meet your needs?