Gross Modified vs. Full-Service vs. NNN: Office Lease Types, Explained

Office lease quotes look like simple numbers — $15, $18, $21 per square foot per year. But the number only tells you half the deal. The other half is the lease structure: who pays for property taxes, insurance, maintenance, utilities, and janitorial. Get the structure wrong and the “cheaper” space can cost more.

The three structures you’ll actually see

Why a low NNN rate can cost more than a higher gross rate

Say you’re comparing a $14 NNN quote against an $18 Gross Modified quote for a similar 1,500 SF suite. On the NNN deal, taxes, insurance, and CAM get added on top of the $14 — and those pass-throughs are set by the building’s actual expenses, which you don’t control and which can rise year over year. Depending on the building, the all-in number can land above the $18 gross quote, with less predictability.

That’s not to say NNN is a bad structure — it’s transparent in its own way, and some tenants prefer seeing costs itemized. The point is that the structures aren’t comparable until you normalize them: ask every landlord for an estimate of total annual occupancy cost, all items included, for the same square footage. Then compare.

What Gross Modified means for your monthly budget

Under a Gross Modified lease — the structure we quote across our four West Houston buildings — the big, unpredictable items (property taxes, building insurance, common-area maintenance, building services) live inside the base rent. What typically stays with the tenant is small and controllable: your own suite’s electricity, your janitorial preference, and in some leases your share of expense increases above a base year.

The practical effect: a $15/SF Gross Modified quote on a 1,000 SF suite is about $1,250 a month, and your real, all-in cost lands close to that. You’re budgeting a number, not a number plus a moving target.

Gross Modified asking rates as of mid-2026; individual suites vary by size, term, and condition.

FROM OUR PORTFOLIO

What a Gross Modified suite looks like

Furnished 3D-tour still of Suite 210 at 800 Wilcrest Dr — one of the four buildings quoted Gross Modified in the table above. Walk the space in 3D before you visit.

See current availability at 800 Wilcrest Dr

TRY IT LIVE

Compare all four buildings on one map

The interactive map shows all four G&W buildings with live Gross Modified rates and available square footage on every pin.

Open the interactive map

Questions to ask before you sign (any structure)

• “What exactly is included in the rate, and what do I pay directly?” Get the list in writing — inclusions vary lease to lease, even within one structure.
• “Is there a base year or expense stop?” If you pay increases above a base year, ask which year and what the building’s recent expense history looks like.
• “How is after-hours HVAC billed?” Standard hours are covered; nights and weekends are usually hourly.
• “What’s the estimated total annual cost for my suite, all items in?” This single question makes any two quotes comparable.

Exact terms vary by lease — this is general information, not legal or financial advice. Have your attorney review before signing.

Frequently asked questions