How Lease Abstraction Services Support Data Migration for ASC 842 Compliance

Having all lease data managed in a single system presents many benefits for ASC 842 compliance such as ease of access to a centralized source of lease data and the ability to have a global view of the organization’s obligations. Centralization also increases data accuracy and reliability in a software solution designed to better aggregate and manage lease data. The key is populating the system with complete, standardized lease information—starting with a solid lease abstract.

For many organizations, the most efficient path is partnering with lease abstraction services (also called lease abstracting services) that can extract and validate critical terms across a full lease portfolio and prepare that data for system loading and long-term administration.

Background on lease accounting data population

As a result of the ASC 842 and IFRS 16 lease accounting standards, organizations have had to examine their lease management practices and address data gaps due to incomplete or inconsistent lease information.

ASC 842 and IFRS 16 require organizations to harness real estate and equipment lease data to make more calculations for financial reporting. The goal of the new standards was to reflect lease liabilities and corresponding assets on the balance sheet, but the exercise can also help ensure lease terms are accurate and current, verify correct payments are made or received and avoid missing critical dates.

What are lease abstraction services?

Lease abstraction services are professional services that extract key financial, operational, and legal terms from commercial lease documents (including amendments) and convert them into standardized, structured data fields—often in a format that can be uploaded into lease administration or lease accounting software.

For commercial teams managing multi-site portfolios, commercial lease abstraction services typically include:

• Reviewing base leases and related amendments/exhibits
• Extracting key terms into a consistent abstraction template
• Flagging non-standard clauses and exceptions
• Validating completeness and identifying gaps
• Preparing abstracted data for migration into your lease system

When abstraction is done well, it becomes the foundation for reliable reporting, consistent administration workflows, and cleaner downstream data population.

How a lease abstraction service prepares a lease abstract

A lease abstraction service typically follows a standardized workflow to produce consistent, system-ready abstracts across a commercial portfolio.

• Confirm the full lease document set (base lease plus amendments/exhibits) and align on a shared abstraction template and field definitions.
• Extract key terms into structured fields, documenting notes for non-standard language and flagged exceptions.
• Run QA validation on critical items (dates/notice windows, rent schedules/escalations, options/rights) and identify gaps or missing data.
• Deliver a system-ready output formatted for upload/migration into your lease platform, with traceability back to source documents.
  
  

A commercial lease abstract example

Here’s a simple lease abstract example (illustrative only) to show what “system-ready” outputs can look like at a high level:

Commercial Lease Abstract Example Fields

• Tenant / Entity: ABC Retail Holdings, LLC
• Landlord: Main Street Properties LP
• Location / Premises: 123 Market St, Suite 200
• Lease Commencement: 04/01/2026
• Lease Expiration: 03/31/2031
• Base Rent:
• Year 1: $25.00/SF
• Year 2: $25.75/SF
• Year 3: $26.52/SF
• Rent Concessions: 2 months abatement at lease start
  CAM / OPEX: Pro rata share, annual reconciliation
• Renewal Options: 1 x 5-year option, notice due 9 months prior
• Termination Rights: None
• Notes / Exceptions: Abatement tied to timely opening; renewal rent at “fair market” with defined arbitration process

The point isn’t the exact fields—it’s that the abstract is consistent, reviewable, and can be mapped into your lease system without re-reading the entire contract.

How to tackle data migration and population into new lease accounting software

Whether you’re implementing a new lease system or cleaning up legacy data, migration is where lease abstraction and data quality controls have the biggest impact.

While a core internal team should be established to work on the compliance initiative, an experienced third party can (and should) be enlisted to do the heavy lifting associated with data migration and lease abstracts.

When vetting potential software vendors, look for a holistic solution that offers a team of in-house attorneys, paralegals and lease administration professionals who can help achieve confidence in the quality and accuracy of critical lease data by providing management solutions for key financial and legal information.

What Should Be Included in Lease Data & Abstraction Services

If you’re engaging commercial lease data services, look for a scope that supports both initial portfolio abstraction and ongoing reliability.

The lease data services should include:

• Lease abstraction with a summation of key financial, business and legal information (including unusual financial obligations, lease provisions and other issues)
• Data validation, with gap analysis and audit of missing or inaccurate data
• High resolution document imaging and storage of legal documents for real estate and equipment leases
• Due diligence support for the acquisition and disposition of assets

These services help ensure you’re not only abstracting terms, but also improving the completeness and trustworthiness of the lease data you rely on.

Need help scaling lease abstraction across a commercial portfolio?

Learn more about the lease data services available through CoStar Real Estate Manager for a well-managed lease accounting software implementation and ongoing lease management.