GlobeSt.com: What kinds of other impacts will the new standards have for companies that lease space?

Tatum: The impacts on tenant decision-making will be wide-ranging. Companies will now need to consider these new standards as they evaluate whether to lease or buy property.

Tenants may need to re-evaluate the structure of leases to keep the reported costs low. And they will need to factor in the increased costs of more administrative and accounting responsibilities related to meeting the new standards.

GlobeSt.com: Where can companies go for help with all this?

Tatum: Certainly, it's important to have quality advice in the areas of accounting, tax and law, working with experts who keep up with FASB requirements and have experience in managing the reporting processes so you don't create problems for yourself down the road.

ATLANTA—New FASB rules take effect for 2019 for public companies and 2020 for private companies. But commercial real estate tenants should be thinking about the change now, because the standards will also require a “look-back” at lease costs for two previous years.

GlobeSt.com caught up with Nailah Tatum, a Tallahassee-based real estate lawyer with the Bryant Miller Olive law firm, to understand the wide-ranging impacts of the new rules in part two of this exclusive interview. You can still read part one: What Real Estate Tenants Need to Know About FASB Accounting Standards.

GlobeSt.com: Why is the FASB making this change?

Tatum: The standards are designed to increase transparency and comparability among organizations that lease assets in a post-Enron world with more stringent reporting requirements. By seeing assets and liabilities related to lease transactions, investors can get a more complete picture of a company's economics.

GlobeSt.com: What kinds of other impacts will the new standards have for companies that lease space?

Tatum: The impacts on tenant decision-making will be wide-ranging. Companies will now need to consider these new standards as they evaluate whether to lease or buy property.

Tenants may need to re-evaluate the structure of leases to keep the reported costs low. And they will need to factor in the increased costs of more administrative and accounting responsibilities related to meeting the new standards.

GlobeSt.com: Where can companies go for help with all this?

Tatum: Certainly, it's important to have quality advice in the areas of accounting, tax and law, working with experts who keep up with FASB requirements and have experience in managing the reporting processes so you don't create problems for yourself down the road.