If you're like me—an admin or office manager responsible for sourcing network equipment, tower leases, or enterprise connectivity—you've probably faced a stack of quotes from companies like SBA Communications, Crown Castle, or American Tower, and wondered: how do I really compare these?
I manage about $150,000 annually in telecom and infrastructure purchases across 8 vendors for a 400-person company with 3 locations. When I took over this role in 2020, I had no structured way to evaluate providers. I learned the hard way that the lowest monthly lease rate isn't always the cheapest deal. Here's the 5-step checklist I now use for every vendor evaluation. It's saved me from at least two costly mistakes.
Who This Checklist Is For
This is for anyone who has to evaluate proposals from tower companies, network equipment resellers, or enterprise connectivity providers—but doesn't have a telecom engineering background. You're the person who handles the paperwork, compares quotes, and has to justify the decision to finance or operations.
The checklist works whether you're looking at a single tower lease renewal or a multi-site network upgrade.
Step 1: Verify Financial Stability (This Is a Weird First Step, But Stay With Me)
Most people start with price. I start with credit ratings. Here's why: when I started in 2020, I almost signed a 3-year lease with a regional tower operator that looked great on price. Then I checked their Moody's rating—it was junk. Six months later, they were acquired, and my contract terms got rewritten. Not ideal.
For publicly-traded infrastructure companies, check their credit ratings from Moody's, S&P, and Fitch. For SBA Communications, for example, their ratings were upgraded in 2024 (I don't have the exact date handy, but Morningstar tracks this). A company with investment-grade ratings is less likely to be sold, restructured, or suddenly change terms mid-contract.
What I do: I search "[Company Name] credit rating Moody's" and look for investment grade (BBB- or higher from S&P, Baa3 or higher from Moody's). If they're below that, I want a more detailed explanation from the vendor.
You don't need to be a financial analyst. Just knowing whether a company is investment grade tells you a lot about their ability to honor a 5-year lease.
Step 2: Check Their Strategic Carrier Agreements
This is one I overlooked for years. In the tower leasing world, a company's relationship with major carriers—Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile—matters for two reasons:
- Lease stability: If the vendor has strategic agreements with these carriers, the underlying tenant demand for that tower is more predictable. A company like SBA Communications has master lease agreements with Verizon, which means the carrier is committed to using their sites.
- Future-proofing: When carriers upgrade to new technology (like 5G), they prioritize vendors with existing agreements.
I ask the vendor directly: "Do you have a strategic agreement with [our primary carrier]? When was it signed? What's the duration?"
If they're vague, that's a yellow flag. If they can point to a publicly-disclosed agreement (many of these are in SEC filings), that's reassuring.
Step 3: Evaluate Lease Revenue Volatility—Not Just the Monthly Price
Here's the insight that cost me the most to learn. In 2022, I compared two tower lease proposals side by side. Option A: $1,200/month. Option B: $1,100/month. I was ready to sign Option B until my CFO asked one question: "What's the beta of their lease revenue?"
I had no idea. Beta volatility measures how much a company's revenue fluctuates compared to the market. For tower companies, low-beta lease revenue is ideal because it means predictable income—and predictable costs for you as a customer.
I don't have hard data on industry-wide lease beta figures, but I can tell you from experience: the companies with stable, long-term lease portfolios rarely surprise you with mid-contract price hikes. The ones with volatile revenue streams? They're much more likely to renegotiate.
Practical tip: Ask your finance team to calculate year-over-year pricing stability for any vendor you're considering. Our finance team now tracks this quarterly. In Q3 2024, we found that our main tower vendor had an average annual price increase of 2.8%, while a competitor averaged 4.1%.
Step 4: Map Their Products to Your Actual Network Architecture
This sounds obvious, but I've made the mistake of buying "network equipment" from a tower company that primarily sells tower space. The result: I bought a batch of connectors that were technically compatible but weren't what our engineering team preferred. That's a $1,200 lesson.
When evaluating SBA Communications or similar providers, be specific about what you're buying:
- Is this for a tower lease (physical space and power)?
- Is this for network equipment (switches, routers, antennas)?
- Or is this a managed service (they maintain the equipment)?
Different products require different evaluation criteria. A tower lease is about location and zoning compliance. Network equipment is about compatibility with your existing Cisco or Juniper gear.
What I do: I send the vendor a one-page network diagram (from our IT team) and ask them to identify exactly which of their products fit where. If they can't do this in a week, they're either not familiar with our setup or their product catalog isn't compatible.
Step 5: Simulate the Total Cost of Ownership Over 3 Years
This is where most administrative buyers stop comparing apples to oranges and start comparing actual costs. The tower lease that's $1,000/month may end up costing more than the $1,200/month one if the cheaper option has:
- Higher pass-through fees for power
- Annual rent escalators above market
- Unfavorable termination terms (you're locked in for 5 years)
I created a simple spreadsheet (I wish I had tracked this from day one) that calculates total cost over 3 years including:
- Base monthly rent
- Estimated annual escalation (based on their contract, not just a verbal commitment)
- Power and maintenance pass-throughs
- One-time setup fees
- Termination penalties
In 2023, this spreadsheet revealed that a "cheaper" tower provider would cost us $14,200 more over 3 years because of their aggressive escalation clause. The rep didn't mention that on the sales call—I had to read the contract carefully.
Speaking of which: always have your legal or procurement team review the termination clause. I don't have hard data on how many vendors bury unfavorable terms in those clauses, but based on 8 vendor evaluations I've done in the last 5 years (this was back in 2024 for one of them), I'd estimate about a third have terms that would cost you if you needed to exit early.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Mistake 1: Assuming All Tower Leases Are the Same
They're not. Some include power and maintenance. Some don't. Always clarify what's included in the base price.
Mistake 2: Not Verifying Zoning and Permitting
This is a big one, especially for new tower sites. The vendor should have all zoning approvals in place. If they don't, you could be months (and thousands of dollars) into the process before discovering the site isn't permitted for your equipment.
Mistake 3: Skipping the Financial Stability Check
I've said this already, but it's worth repeating. A solid financial rating (Moody's, S&P, Fitch) is the single best indicator of long-term contract stability. If the vendor is below investment grade, ask for additional assurances—like a parent company guarantee or a longer-term rate lock.
A quick note on pricing: The figures I've mentioned are based on quotes I've seen from 2022-2024. Tower lease pricing varies significantly by market and site type. Always verify current rates for your specific location.
If I could redo those early vendor evaluations, I'd start with this checklist from day one. It's not perfect—sometimes you still get surprised by hidden costs or zoning delays—but it's way better than going in blind.