The parties to the lease agreement are identified in the first paragraph on Page 1 of the USPS Lease Agreement. The Landlord identity needs to be the same as (1) the Grantee’s name on the recorded deed, and (2) the identity of the taxpayer shown in local county records. Unless proper assignment documents are prepared, signed and provided to the USPS, changes in ownership after execution of the lease by the USPS can cause the identity of the lessor as known to the USPS to be incorrect. For example, a lessor who causes the property to be titled in the name of a trust or LLC must notify the USPS of the change. Similarly, it is important to notify the USPS when (a) a Power of Attorney has been granted relating to a property, or (b) one or more of the owners of the property dies. In such cases, the Landlord should contact the USPS Facilities Department and request a Change of Ownership package. Changes in ownership are required to be completed before lease negotiations can be completed or leases or lease amendments can be signed.
Contributed by:
Karen J. Delamore, DRE Consulting
303-917-8810 or email: kj.delamore@comcast.net