Why I Have a Passion for CAM Audits (Yes, Really)

I know what you’re thinking: “How could someone be passionate about Common Area Maintenance audits?” But here I am — doing exactly that, and enjoying every minute of it.

This isn’t my day job. By day, I’m a CFO for a national real estate company with millions of square feet under management. I’ve been in the trenches of real estate accounting and finance for over 15 years, across almost every asset class. But this CAM Audit work? This is a passion project.

Let me tell you why.

It Started With a Mess

About 10 years ago, I was a property accountant managing roughly 2 million square feet of shopping centers across the country. Back then, I didn’t just inherit properties — I inherited chaos.

The CAM reconciliations I saw were vague, messy, and downright lazy. Most were simply rolled forward from the prior year with no fresh eyes, no comparison to the lease, and no thought about what was actually allowed or excluded.

Nobody was scrubbing the general ledger. Nobody was questioning if expenses should really be passed through to tenants. Nobody was looking out for fairness — not to the landlord, and definitely not to the tenants.

It was shocking. And honestly? It was a wake-up call.

Why Is It Such a Mess in the First Place?

There are two main reasons CAM billing is often a disaster: bad tools and bad processes.

First, the tools. Most reconciliations are done in old-school Excel workbooks that are way too complex and completely manual. One bad formula, one copy-paste error, and suddenly someone’s being charged for a roof repair in a totally different building.

On the flip side, some landlords use accounting systems like Yardi, which could be powerful — but they’re only as good as the data and lease setup behind them. And unfortunately, lease setups in CAM modules are notoriously complex. What happens most of the time? A previous lease setup gets cloned for a new tenant, without properly updating the expense pools, exclusions, or specific lease terms. It’s a copy-paste approach to something that really needs precision.

The result: reconciliations that are inaccurate, confusing, and full of avoidable mistakes — in either direction.

Each Lease Is a Puzzle — and I Love Solving Them

What most people don’t realize is that every single lease is different. Some have caps. Some don’t. Some allow amortized capital improvements, admin fees, or management markups. Others exclude all of that. A well-written lease might spell it out clearly — but most don’t.

So when CAM reconciliations get done by just plugging numbers into a template… without looking at the lease? You end up with real consequences. Sometimes it means tenants are paying for things they shouldn’t. Other times, landlords are not passing through charges they are absolutely allowed to.

It’s not always one-sided.

What I love about CAM audits is that they’re detailed. Unique. Analytical. And they matter — especially for small businesses who can’t afford year-end surprises.

Why I Keep Doing It

I do this because it makes a difference. A $3,000 error may not matter to a massive landlord — but it sure does to a mom-and-pop tenant trying to keep the lights on.

I also do it because it scratches a personal itch. I like getting in the weeds. I like solving problems that others overlook. And I genuinely believe tenants (and landlords) deserve fair, accurate, and transparent reconciliations — based on what’s actually in the lease, not what someone thinks is in there.

If you’re a tenant and your CAM statement doesn’t make sense — or you’re a landlord who wants a second opinion to clean things up — I’m here. This isn’t just a side hustle. It’s something I truly care about.

Let’s get it right.

Contact me at CamAuditServices@gmail.com

About CAM Audit Services
CAM Audit Services is a passion project founded by a seasoned real estate CFO who also holds CPA and CFA credentials. After reviewing hundreds — if not thousands — of CAM reconciliations over the years, it became clear just how often these calculations are done incorrectly, overlooked, or misapplied. What started as a niche expertise has grown into a mission: to bring order to the chaos, clarity to the numbers, and fairness to tenants and landlords alike.

We specialize in reviewing Common Area Maintenance (CAM), Insurance, and Real Estate Tax pass-throughs — line by line, lease by lease. Whether you’re a tenant looking for transparency or a landlord wanting to ensure accuracy, we’re here to help make sense of it all.