NNN vs. Gross vs. Modified Gross Leases in Greensboro: What Triad Industrial Tenants Actually Pay

When a tenant calls me about a warehouse in Greensboro, the first number they hear is the asking rent. That number is rarely what they will pay. In the Triad, almost all industrial space is quoted NNN (triple net), and the costs on top of rent are where budgets get blown. Here is how the three common lease structures work, what they cost locally in 2026, and what to ask before you sign.

What do NNN, gross and modified gross actually mean?

The labels are not standardized. I have seen "modified gross" leases that pass through almost everything and "NNN" leases where the landlord keeps the roof and structure. Always read the operating expense clause rather than trusting the label.

How much are NNN charges on a Greensboro warehouse?

NNN charges have three parts. Taxes are the one you can calculate from public numbers.

Property taxes. For fiscal 2026-27, Guilford County adopted a rate of 78.95 cents per $100 of assessed value (up 5.9 cents), and the City of Greensboro set its rate at 79.85 cents per $100 (up from 67.25 cents). A building inside Greensboro city limits therefore pays about $1.59 per $100 of assessed value. Buildings in unincorporated Guilford, High Point, Kernersville or Forsyth County have different combined rates, so check the specific parcel.

Insurance. This depends on the building's construction, sprinklers, roof age and the owner's policy. Ask for the actual premium allocated to your space.

CAM. Landscaping, parking lot upkeep, snow and ice, exterior lighting, sometimes a management fee. On a single-tenant building you may handle much of this yourself, so CAM can be small. In a multi-tenant park it is billed back as a share of the total.

A worked example: 20,000 SF warehouse in Central Greensboro

To show how the pieces add up, here is an illustration, not a quote. Rent uses Cushman & Wakefield's Q3 2026 average warehouse/distribution asking rent for Central Greensboro ($7.02/SF/yr). Taxes use the 2026-27 rates above on an assumed assessed value of $50/SF. Insurance and CAM are placeholder assumptions to show the math; real numbers vary by building.

In this example, the NNN charges add about 20% to the asking rent. A landlord quoting the same building on a modified gross basis would fold base-year taxes and insurance into a higher rent. The headline numbers look very different, but the cost can be close. Compare buildings on total occupancy cost, never rent against rent.

Why does the lease type matter more in 2027 and beyond?

Guilford and Davidson counties completed 2026 reappraisals, but a 2026 state law delayed the new values; they are expected to apply starting fiscal 2027-28. (I covered the details in Guilford County's revaluation delay.) Greensboro raised its 2026-27 rate in part because it could not use the new values yet.

For a tenant signing a three- to five-year lease now, that matters:

• NNN: you pay the higher tax bill when new values take effect, in full, starting that year.
• Modified gross with a 2026 base year: you pay the increase over 2026 taxes, which could still be meaningful.
• True gross: the landlord absorbs it until renewal, when the new costs show up in the rent.

None of these is automatically better. What you want is to know the number before you sign. Ask the landlord for an estimate of taxes under the new values, or ask me to run one.

What should tenants check in the operating expense clause?

Use this checklist on any Triad industrial lease, NNN or modified gross:

• Two to three years of actual operating expense history, not just this year's estimate
• Your pro-rata share and how it is calculated (rentable SF of your suite ÷ rentable SF of the building or park)
• Capital expenses excluded: roof replacement, structural repairs, parking lot reconstruction. If they are passed through, they should be amortized over their useful life, not billed in one year
• Cap on controllable CAM (often a fixed percent per year; taxes and insurance are usually excluded from caps)
• Management fee stated as a percentage and limited to what is reasonable
• Annual reconciliation with a right to review or audit the landlord's records
• HVAC responsibility: who repairs it, who replaces it, and whether a service contract is required
• Base year (for modified gross) set to a full, stabilized year
• Gross-up provision in multi-tenant buildings, so expenses are not shifted to you when the park is partly vacant

Do Triad tenants have leverage right now?

It depends on the building. Cushman & Wakefield reported Triad industrial vacancy at 5.5% in Q3 2026, the lowest among the major Carolinas industrial markets, with average asking rent up 1.4% from Q2 to $6.37/SF. CBRE, which tracks a smaller set of buildings, reported 6.7% vacancy and a $6.60/SF average asking rent that "softened slightly." The two firms count different inventories, so compare each only to itself.

The leverage is in new construction. Cushman & Wakefield noted that space delivered in Q3 was 25.4% vacant at completion, and CBRE expects about 553,000 SF of speculative space to deliver in Q4 2026. New Class A space with vacancy gives tenants room on concessions and expense terms. Small-bay space in Kernersville or North Guilford gives you very little. See current rents by submarket and the full market report.

The bottom line

Ask every landlord for the same three things: base rent, a line-item estimate of all pass-throughs, and the expense history behind it. Then compare total occupancy cost over the whole term, including escalations and free rent. That is the only apples-to-apples way to choose between an NNN warehouse in Greensboro and a modified gross flex suite down the road.

General information, not tax or legal advice. Have your attorney review lease language before signing.

Looking for space? Send Matt your requirements and he'll compare options on true occupancy cost.

Sources

• Cushman & Wakefield — Greensboro/Winston-Salem Industrial MarketBeat Q3 2026 (Oct 15, 2026)
• CBRE — Q3 2026 Greensboro/Winston-Salem Industrial Figures (Oct 9, 2026)
• Guilford County — Board of Commissioners Adopts Balanced Fiscal Year 2027 Budget (Jun 25, 2026)
• Greensboro Thread — Greensboro Property Owners Face Tax Hike After State-Mandated Revaluation Pause (Jun 24, 2026)