Title: Looking for a mentor who’s actually bought NNN and NN deals

Rashid Covington · 2026-11-01T12:05:04-08:00

I am a newer commercial buyer working net lease retail in GA, SC, AL and north Florida. Mostly single tenant, under $2.5 million. That's the kind of box. Dollar General, Family Dollar, Walgreens.I'm not sitting on the sidelines reading about it. I have LOIs out on three single-tenant stores in the $700K-$900K range right now, and I'm working a four-store Dollar General portfolio around $1.8M, where the seller offered to carry the paper. I've been coming in under the broker's NOI on the ones I've underwritten, once I add back management, reserves, and roof and structure – the kind of thing I want a second pair of eyes on exactly.Looking for someone who has actually done these deals. bought them, held them, sold them Both triple net and double net. Someone who will allow me to run a deal by them from time to time and tell me straight when I’m wrong.What I need help with:How to read a lease properly. Who actually owns the roof, the structure, the parking lot, and the HVAC?pricing the risk when it is a franchisee or weak guarantor, not corporate.What to do with a lease with 5 to 7 years to run?Seller financing terms – balloon, amortisation, prepay, release clauses.Knowing when to walk and when to re-trade.What you’d get out of it: I do my own underwriting before I ask anything. I’ll give you the numbers and my thinking, not something I could have googled. I don’t waste people’s time, and I don’t need to be led by the hand. I’m happy to do some legwork for you if that’s useful – I’m looking at deals every week out here anyway.I’m not asking for money. I’m not raising any money. One bit of advice.If that’s you, then comment or DM me. And if you know someone who would fit, I would appreciate the introduction.

Ashish AcharyaBusiness Member

CPA, CFP®, PFS · Sarasota, FL · Member since 2017 · 5k+ posts · 3k+ votes

2d

Rashid, you're asking the right questions. With NNN deals, I'd add one more layer to the underwriting: the after-tax economics, not just NOI and cap rate.

I'd pay particular attention to how the lease allocates responsibility for the roof, structure, HVAC and other major items, but also model the tax side of the acquisition, depreciation, financing, and eventual exit.

The seller financing piece is especially worth modeling before you agree to the terms. A low payment can look attractive while the balloon, prepayment terms, and overall after-tax return tell a very different story.

I also like that you're doing your own underwriting before asking for a second opinion. That's probably the best way to build the experience you're looking for.

Feel free to DM me, I’d be happy to send over a few resources that might be helpful.

[email protected]941-914-7779

INVESTOR FRIENDLY CPA®4.9242 Reviews

Website View Page

TaxMD® | Tax Planning Software

Website View Page

1 Reply

Rashid CovingtonPro Member
OP
Savannah, Savannah GA · Member since 2026 · 8 posts · 2 votes
1d
This is the most helpful answer I've had on here - thank you.

The after-tax part is what I haven't seen. I have been underwriting on NOI, cap rate and treating taxes as something to figure out with my accountant later. I can see how that is backwards. Same thing with the seller financing. I've been thinking about a seller carry as a reason to be more flexible on price, and what you're describing is exactly how that goes sideways.

I’d like to take you on the DM. What I’d most want your read on: When you model a seller-carry deal, what do you solve for first? I keep coming back to the monthly payment and I suspect that’s the wrong place to start.

Thanks again for taking the time – DM’ing now.
0 Reply

Noah WrightBusiness Member

USA, Nationwide · Member since 2024 · 338 posts · 123 votes

2d

Coming in under the broker's NOI once you add back roof and structure is the right instinct, and it often means the deal was marketed as NNN when the lease reads more like NN. The words to hunt for are repair versus replace. Plenty of leases have the tenant maintaining the roof, HVAC and parking lot while replacement stays with the landlord. HVAC clauses also commonly cap what the tenant pays per repair, so look for a dollar figure. With a franchisee guarantor, the rent is only as strong as that operator, so size your reserves as if the big repairs are yours. The seller carrying the paper doesn't change who pays for a new roof. On the Dollar General package, does the roof clause say repair or replace?

[email protected]737-773-3717

1 Reply

Ronald RohdePro Member

Attorney · Dallas, TX · Member since 2016 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes

1d

I guess I dont see the value for the mentor. you should open with your value to them, not leave it for a 5 word sentence. I own NNN industrial, but this approach ain't it.

1 Reply

Rashid CovingtonPro Member
OP
Savannah, Savannah GA · Member since 2026 · 8 posts · 2 votes
1d
Fair enough, that is a good correction and I'll take it."

What I should have led with: I source off-market net-lease deals in coastal Georgia, the Carolinas and North Florida. Direct to seller mail and broker relationships, mostly retail under $3 million. I see industrial in those same markets that I’m not set up to buy.”

If that helps I can send them your way, no strings attached. And if you ever want to tell me what I'm getting wrong on one, I'll take that too.

Thanks for the straight answer.
0 Reply

Rickey Shneyder

Lender · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2026 · 11 posts · 2 votes

1h

@Rashid Covington On your question about what to solve for first in a seller carry: start with the balloon, not the monthly payment. Figure out what the property has to be worth, and what the lease has to look like, for a bank to refinance the remaining balance when the note comes due. Then work backward to the terms.

A few things from the lending side:

- Lease term vs. balloon. With 5-7 years left on a lease, most banks won't refinance a single-tenant building in the last couple of years of the term unless it has been -renewed. Push for a balloon at least 2 years past the earliest lease expiration, and a 20-25 year amortization so the balance has actually come down by then.

- Weak guarantor. With a franchisee or small-operator guarantee, price it as if the tenant could leave at expiration. Underwrite what the box rents for vacant, plus 6-12 months of downtime and TI, and make sure the note still works at that number.

- Release clauses on the 4-store package. Get a release price for each store written into the note (110-125% of its allocated loan amount is common) so you can sell or refinance one without paying off all four. Also ask for cure rights so one tenant going dark isn't a default on the whole portfolio.

- Prepay and assumability. Ask for no prepayment penalty or a step-down, and make the note assumable. Both give you exits if rates drop or you want to sell before the balloon.

- Secondary financing. Ask now whether the seller will allow a second lien or subordinate later. It's much easier to negotiate before closing than at refi time.

0 Reply

Title: Looking for a mentor who’s actually bought NNN and NN deals

Title: Looking for a mentor who’s actually bought NNN and NN deals

Most Popular Reply

6 Replies