How to Do a CAM Reconciliation: Step-by-Step for Small Landlords
A CAM reconciliation (also called a true-up) compares what tenants paid in monthly estimates with their actual share of the property's operating costs, after the year ends. The steps are the same whether you own one strip center or a dozen.
- Pull the year's expenses from your books — a Profit and Loss or general ledger for the property, for the lease year (usually the calendar year).
- Remove what tenants don't pay. Debt service, depreciation, leasing commissions, capital improvements (unless the lease allows amortization), legal costs of leasing, and anything your leases exclude. See common CAM exclusions.
- Sort the rest into pools — CAM, real estate taxes and insurance at minimum, because leases often treat them differently.
- Gross up variable expenses if the building wasn't fully occupied and the lease has a gross-up clause (how gross-up works).
- Compute each tenant's share: RSF ÷ building area, prorated for partial years.
- Apply each lease's terms: base year or expense stop, caps on controllable expenses, admin fee — in the order the lease says (order of operations).
- Subtract estimates paid to get the balance due or credit, and set next year's monthly estimate.
- Send a statement that shows the math, with an offer of supporting invoices. Many leases set a deadline (often 90–120 days after year-end) — check yours.
The CamProof calculator follows exactly these steps and prints the statements. Prefer a spreadsheet? Use the free Excel template.
This guide describes common practice. Your leases govern how expenses are shared; when in doubt ask your attorney or accountant.