The final alternative is a gross lease that combines a CPI adjustment with an expense stop.
This shifts the risk of any increase in expenses to the tenant while retaining the benefit of anydecrease in expenses. Thus, we would expect the effective rent to be the lowest for this alternative.
From the preceding examples, it should be clear that the effective rent is a measure of the
expected present value of cash flows to the lessor (cost to the lessee). However, it should be
stressed that effective rents cannot be compared without considering differences in risk. The
effective rent is useful, however, when it is desirable to compare the expected returns from
different lease alternatives with a single measure. It also is superior to comparing average rents
or total rents over the life of the lease.