Owner of billboard on my property refuses to pay

You asked about a billboard lease where you are the new owner of property on which a billboard is located.

You really need to speak with a lawyer about this matter. It is likely that the parties had an oral agreement, but leases and oral agreements in particular are generally not enforceable once a property goes through a foreclosure.

Regards,

Roger

Hi,

The billboard is usually treated like a chattel, not a fixture when it comes down to Landlord and Tenant law. A chattel is similar to a shelving unit in a store which can be removed or replaced without the consent of the Landlord (unless content provisions were included into the Lease - usually in the case where a new Tenant releases the space from a Landlord but kept the equipment from the prior Tenant as claim against past-due rent). However, a "fixture" cannot be removed under most circumstances. If a grocery or food store for instance installed extra refrigeration units on the roof, cut holes and ran duct work throughout, the entire system would be regarded as a "fixture" or in other words "now part of the building construction and premises". It is likely that the billboard operator has a lease wherein the structure is a chattel. That said, there are usually clauses which have early termination notices for the Landlord in the event of redevelopment purposes or non-performance (non-payment of rent for instance).

Obviously if hes not paying rent, you have rights. You may want to check with the City or County if a permit was issued for the sign and what name it was in. There could be a possibility that he is a rogue operator and put up the sign illegally (given that he has no proof of claim).

You are welcome to email me for an audit and analysis of your situation and we will give you a recommendation for free to help you out.

cjasper@allvision.com