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TowerPoint Capital (formerly Communications Capital Group) is a leading institutional investor in cellular site locations across the United States. Our mission is to leverage our significant knowledge base to create long-term value for our landlord and corporate partners.

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The Advantages of a Cell Site Lease Purchase


If you've been leasing out your property for a cell site, you're most likely aware of the considerable income involved in the business. However, there will be instances when you will find the regular fee too small to cover some huge expenses you're anticipating in the future. Fortunately, you can decide to sell your lease to a firm interested in buying it.

Choosing a cell site lease purchase can be beneficial in several ways. Obviously, you will receive a lump sum, which can be bigger than your potential monthly earnings of several years combined. This can give you an out-and-out opportunity to make any huge expense without affecting your property ownership.

Entering a lease contract with a telecommunications company that wishes to install a tower on your rooftop involves a complex agreement, considering that this is a rare type of business. What seems fine and tolerable now may be burdensome for you in the future. You can pass that worry to a lease buying company upon sale of the lease.

Additionally, if you agreed to an arrangement in which you'll pay a huge tax liability, this might change a bit after selling the lease. The tax liability will remain and will reflect in your sale with the purchasing company, yet it won't be bigger or heavier than what you're looking at if you will keep the lease.

The Perfect Location: What a Cell Site Should Be

Leasing your land or property to be used as a cell site by a telecommunications company is one of the best ways you can earn money without having to work much. The appeal is quite obvious: as more and more people use cell phones nowadays, additional cellular towers need to be constructed to accommodate them. Of course, this is not as easy as it sounds because cell phone companies can be quite picky when it comes to finding the perfect location for their sites.

For one thing, cell towers should be far from residential properties due to health and safety concerns. Local ordinances specifically require that the distance from the base of a tower to the residential zone must be equivalent to two feet per one foot of the tower height. This means that you are generally out of luck if you wish to lease your own backyard as a cell site (unless the yard encompasses the entire 3-5 blocks of your street).

Obstructions like trees and power lines can also have a negative impact on signal transmission, which means that cluttered or forested properties are usually glossed over by cell companies.

Even if you meet the requirements, your neighborhood may not even allow the construction of a cell tower purely due to aesthetic reasons. Consult with the relevant authorities if that’s the case because cell companies don’t want to spend much in making their cell towers “beautiful”, even if the site is a perfect location for them.

Towering Titans: The Utility of Cell Phone Towers

Communication technology has advanced by leaps and bounds, connecting people far easier than ever before. Man has come a very long way from sending smoke signals, and today the most popular method of communication is via cellular phones. These mobile handheld devices allow users to call each other and send messages among themselves, as well as carry out many other tasks that the modern cell phones’ advanced features allow.

The capability of cell phones to call and send messages wirelessly is all thanks to the cellular towers specifically made to help convey the signals of the devices. Basically, cell phones work by transmitting calls and messages to the nearest tower, which are then dispatched to a switching network. From there, the signals are sent straight to the other handset, completing the wireless transfer.

Cellular phones are limited only by their range to the nearest tower, hence the term cellular (as these towers each have limited range, a “cell”). Theoretically, enough towers scattered strategically across a given area should give users ample coverage. Indeed, the ownership of a tower is invaluable in keeping up the communication ability of a given region, and it’s very lucrative for those who manage to secure a spot with numerous users tapping into the network.



A Look into How Cell Towers Work

When cellular phones had a wide release in the U.S. market back in the 1990s, most people welcomed them with open arms. Today, these mobile devices are used not just to make a phone call or send text messages to family and friends, but to send e-mails, connect to a social network or VPN, or do online shopping as well. Despite using their cell phones for a wide array of tasks, not many cell phone users are familiar with how the magical tool works exactly.

Mobile phones essentially serve as the receiver of signals from digital signal processors contained in a cell site or cell tower. Cell tower locations are ideally set up in elevated areas like rooftops and water tanks to allow enhanced coverage. One can easily spot a cell tower because it typically shows an antenna mounted atop a tall structure.


Not all rooftops and water tanks can be transformed automatically into a cell tower location, though, as some U.S. cities have formulated strict rules regarding the erection of cell sites. In some cities like Denver and New York City, for instance, some cell towers are made to look like trees to allow them to blend in with the surroundings. This setup also exists in other parts of the world like Portugal, Italy, and South Africa. In Atlanta, meanwhile, cell sites must be constructed according to local zoning regulations.

Getting a Cell Phone Tower Lease on the Property

As the wireless industry continues to enjoy popularity, tower leases become attractive options for individuals who wish to make their land more profitable. Having a cell phone tower on their property is certainly a good way for landowners to make money with increased profits, as the area and the tower can be constantly developed for better service. However, not all properties are ideal for a cell site.

Property owners can check if they are located within a mile of an existing cell phone tower. The presence of even one tower reduces the chance for their property to be considered. Properties in urban and suburban areas or those located near a major highway or a populated town are more likely to be considered, because there will be more people who could possibly use the service.

Another factor that determines if the property is a perfect location for a cell site is if the pending location is an industrial property surrounded by residential properties. If so, then there’s a good chance that the property will be considered as a cell site candidate. However, the reverse (that is, a residential location in the midst of industrial properties) is less desirable, and it won’t make for a good candidate.

Properties on the highest point in the county are seldom considered, as well as those that are in areas with no network coverage at all. This is because some providers may not have plans to extend their services yet to such locations.

3 Benefits of Selling One’s Cell Tower Leasing

As a landowner who leases his or her land for a cell tower, you might receive an offer to sell the lease at some point. Perhaps you are deliberating within yourself whether or not you should sell, and why.

Your reluctance to sell is reasonable for a variety of reasons. An active lease provides a constant trickle of income. Additionally, selling your lease to someone or a company can be a daunting task that you might be unprepared for.

Should you overcome your indecision, selling your cell tower leasing can result in a number of benefits for you. Here are three of them:

Capital

Although you receive lease payments every month, you won’t be able to tap into that as a long-term revenue stream. Selling your cell site lease can grant you large amounts of capital to invest in other long-term ventures.

Risk Reduction

Not only does selling your cell site lease give you capital, but also it reduces your risk against inflation or an early termination of the lease. Additionally, you minimize the risk of owning a devalued lease when the cell tower becomes obsolete.

Tax Treatment

While it depends on the situation, selling your cell tower lease can also grant you a favorable tax treatment. What this means is that you can defer taxes through a “1031 exchange” if you purchase another property following the lease’s sale.

To ensure that you get the most out of selling your lease, always seek advice from an experienced professional.

How to Locate Cell Phone Tower Companies in Your Area

Are you having trouble finding your wireless carrier in your area? If you are, there's no need to worry as there are now many ways to locate the provider you're looking for.

Despite the fact that all major wireless carriers now offer nationwide coverage, not all telcos are created equal. Locating cell phone tower companies in your area can be difficult especially if they aren't located in major cities likes Boston, New York, Chicago and San Francisco. You're going to have a hard time finding a good one if your carrier isn't available in the area you currently reside in.

Cell tower databases like AntennaSearch and Mobiledia have made it easier for cell phone users to locate the carrier they're subscribed to. There is also the option of typing your city into Google maps, which gives you easier access to the location of your carrier. They often rent or sell towers to companies, so it will be useful to search for customer feedback on forums.

When searching for a cell phone tower, you should also veer away from dead spots. Websites like SignalMap.com can help give you an idea of the strength of the reception in a particular area.

If you're looking for cell phones towers in your area, just remember these tips and don't forget to always be cautious.
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