The trigger
What starts the clock?
Look for words such as receipt, delivery, the statement date, or the end of the calendar year. Keep evidence of the event the lease names.
Audit window language
Read the words. Then mark the date.
An audit clause is more than a number of days. It tells you what event starts a period, what action to take, and how to deliver it. Those details determine the next step for your own lease.
Five questions in one clause
When?What event starts the period?
How long?Which period applies to this action?
What?Is it a request, objection, or audit election?
To whom?Who must receive the communication?
How?What delivery method does the lease require?
The signed lease, amendments, and actual delivery facts control.
Break it into parts
A deadline only makes sense with its instructions.
Read the review provision alongside amendments and the general notices section. Highlight each piece before calculating or relying on a date.
The period
How much time is allowed?
Identify the period for each action. Requesting records, objecting to a charge, and beginning an audit may have different clocks.
The required act
What must the tenant do?
The clause may call for written notice, a specific objection, a records request, or an election to audit. The verb matters as much as the number of days.
The delivery rule
Who receives it, and how?
Read the general notices section for the recipient, address, permitted method, and when a notice is considered given.
A worked reading example
“Within 60 days” is only the middle of the sentence.
Imagine a clause requiring a written objection identifying disputed items within 60 days after receipt of an annual reconciliation. To use it, you still need to establish receipt, name the disputed items, and follow the lease’s notice procedure.
This is a fictional example, not a deadline calculation or an interpretation of your lease.
Illustrative clause worksheet
TriggerReceipt of the annual reconciliation
Period60 days in this fictional example
Required actWritten objection with disputed items identified
RecipientThe party named in the notices section
DeliveryThe method the lease permits
A separate records request or audit right may have different terms. Look for those clauses too.
Three distinct actions
Do not treat every review step as the same notice.
Requesting records, objecting to a charge, and exercising a formal audit right can be separate acts. Your lease may define different periods or procedures for each. Track them individually.
Common questions
Before you rely on a window.
Is there one standard audit window?
No. The signed lease and amendments set the relevant periods and triggering events. Different actions may have separate requirements.
Is asking for records the same as objecting?
Not necessarily. A lease may treat a records request, written objection, and formal audit election as different steps. Read each provision before assuming one preserves another.
Does a free preview send a notice for me?
No. A preview can surface language to check. It does not send an objection, request records, or preserve contractual rights.
What if I think a deadline has passed?
Review the full agreement, amendments, delivery evidence, and correspondence before concluding what options remain. A qualified adviser can help interpret the clause and circumstances.
Your next step
Find the review terms in your own lease.
A free lease preview can surface notice and audit language to verify. It does not calculate a legal deadline or send a notice on your behalf.