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We act for a wide range of landlords providing a full suite of services. We act on behalf of numerous commercial landlords in granting leases as well as performing other management services on their behalf, such as, granting licences to assign, licences to underlet and licences for alterations.
When we grant a lease on behalf of a client it is likely to involve:
- Review the title to your property to ensure that there are no unusual provisions that prevent grant of the lease and prove that title to the tenant.
- Prepare replies to enquiries before contract and obtain any documentation that the tenant will require, such as, insurance details, service charge package, energy performance certificate, asbestos reports and fire safety documentation.
- Obtain bank consent to the form of lease.
- Consider whether the tenant should be given protection under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, which protects business tenancies. Does the landlord need guaranteed possession of the property at the expiry of the lease or is it willing to allow the tenant to apply to Court for a new lease and terms to be determined by the Court, if they cannot be agreed.
- Repairing obligations – Will the tenant take the property in its current state of repair or will the lease be granted subject to a schedule of condition. That schedule of condition will identify any items of disrepair in the property and the tenant will not be obliged to repair such matters at the expiry of its lease.
- Rights – What rights does the tenant need to pass over other parts of the landlord’s property? These rights should be clearly defined so as to limit the tenant’s entry onto other parts of the landlord’s property.
- Alterations – Will the tenant be prevented from carrying out structural alterations to the property that could be difficult to reinstate at the expiry of the lease and that could adversely affect the property? Will the tenant be permitted to carry out internal non-structural alterations with the landlord’s consent? Will the tenant be permitted to install and replace internal demountable partitioning without the landlord’s consent? Will the landlord insist that all alterations to the property are reinstated at the expiry of the lease?
- Insurance – The landlord will usually accept responsibility for insuring the property at the cost of the tenant. The landlord’s obligations need to be clearly identified as well as the tenant’s obligation to pay the insurance premium. What happens if the property is destroyed or severely damaged during the course of the lease? Usually, tenants would expect that the rent is suspended until the property is fit for use.
- The tenant would be obliged to comply with statutes.
- Break clauses – There may be such clauses in favour of either the landlord or the tenant, which allow the relevant party to bring the lease to an end earlier than the expiry of the term of the lease.
- Rent review – the rent may be subject to review. You should expect that any review will be on an upwards only basis.
Our team can also assist you with the management of your properties including dealing with the following:
- Rent Deposit Deed – You may want to take a rent deposit from the tenant by way of security. That document should be prepared so as to cover you in case of a breach by the tenant of certain obligations in the lease, such as, non-payment of rent.
- Licence for Alterations – If the tenant carries out alterations to the property then you want to know that those alterations will be carried out in a good and proper manner and in accordance with statute. You also want to know that the tenant will be obliged to reinstate the property at the expiry of the lease to its original condition.
- Licence to Underlet – The tenant may want to underlet the whole or part of its property to a third party. Subject to the terms of the lease, you may be willing to allow an underletting to take place so as to assist the tenant in paying the rent to you as landlord. We can draft such a licence and review the terms of any underlease so that your investment is not adversely affected. You will want to insist that protection under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 is excluded from the sub-lease.
- Licence to Assign – Your tenants may want to assign the benefit of their leases from time to time. We would prepare a licence so as to ensure that the incoming tenant entered into obligations in your favour to comply with the terms of the lease. The outgoing tenant may be released from any obligations to comply with the lease after the assignment unless it enters into an authorised guarantee agreement. We can draft both the licence to assign and the authorised guarantee agreement.
We will usually obtain the consent of your bank to any licences and would also require the tenant to pay your legal costs involved in connection with such documentation.
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