Jarred Saba on Buying Billboard Leases

Screen Shot 2016-04-04 at 11.54.16 AMThere are several companies which want to buy outdoor advertising easements:  LandmarkMilepost CapitalBillboard Property Group and Lease Advisors.  Insider is skeptical about some of these companies but thinks it never hurts to talk to anyone any time.

Lease Advisors was founded in 2008 and is the nation’s leading lease acquisition and consultancy firm providing services to landowners whose property is host to a billboard or cellular installation.  The company has offices in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Melbourne, Toronto and Puerto Rico.  The company’s website says that a transaction takes an average of 30 days to close.

Insider recently talked with Lease Advisors CEO Jarred Saba.  Saba founded Telecom Lease Advisors in 2008.  Prior to then he was an SVP of Tower Lending and Corporate lending for a national lease acquisition company.  Saba has a BA in Finance from The University of Southern California and a law degree and MBA from the University of San Diego.

sabaJarred tell us about your background

I got into the business out of law school. In 2002 I did the first telecom lease buyout. I worked for a national lease acquisition company and then in 2008 decided to go out on my own.

What benefits does Lease Advisors provide to landlords?

Generally speaking banks will not finance a billboard lease, so we step in and can provide financing and liquidity for a lease to a landlord for the lease. We can also be a resource when a lease is up for negotiation. After doing so many of these types of transactions, we can be an advocate for the landlord when needed, as we know what a billboard company will accept

What benefits can you provide to billboard companies?

Billboard companies like having a friendly landlord and we want smooth sailing for all parties involved. Essentially, we want the landlord to be happy and the billboard company to be happy during and after the lease negotiations. We also can provide an ability to execute transactions nationwide. We have a strong presence nationally and have done billboard and cellular lease transactions nationally in 48 states as well as internationally in Australia, Canada and Puerto Rico.

What things do you look for when you evaluate a lease purchase?

We want to see who’s on the billboard and determine if it’s one of the major outdoor advertising companies, allowing us to better understand how to approach each transaction. We also want to understand where the billboard is, as they say, location, location, location is very important, major street intersections and freeways are of particular interest. Since we do not finance new sign builds our only focus and interest is in existing lease outdoor advertising (billboard) lease purchases. We work hard to give our clients the best possible situation relating to their existing lease. Our goal is to maximize lease value while creating avenues for new revenue to come in with each site lease we acquire. We pride ourselves in providing lasting value for each client, because we look at each client as a partner.

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