Shops and restaurants
Retail rent review and lease renewal surveyors for landlords and tenants
For landlords and tenants of shops and restaurants, we gather the relevant evidence, inspect the premises, analyse your lease and use our negotiating skills on your behalf to ensure the best outcome for you. It starts with our free, no-obligation lease analysis.
A shop's rent at review is based on its open market rental value, not on how well the business trades. That value is worked out from comparable evidence: the rents agreed for similar premises nearby, compared per square foot. At a lease renewal the rent can fall as well as rise. We act for both landlords and tenants, and we'll analyse your lease free of charge.
For landlords
Can your shop or restaurant achieve a higher rent?
When a rent review or lease renewal occurs, we gather the evidence and negotiate the best rent your property should be achieving.
- More rent adds to its value. An extra £20,000 a year in rent may add £400,000 to the capital value of a property. For one Central London shop, the review also meant an additional £750,000 on its investment value.
- Low rents nearby count against you. Low rents agreed at other shops on the same high street become new comparable evidence, and are used against landlords at rent reviews and renewals.
- We've argued both sides. We have acted for landlords whose tenants are betting shops such as William Hill, Ladbrokes and Betfred, and for one of the major high street gambling retailers itself.
LandlordShop · Central LondonThe rent rose from £30,000 to £61,200 a year: £31,200 a year more.
For tenants
Facing a large rent increase on your shop or restaurant?
If your landlord has proposed a revised rent at review or renewal, we will negotiate to ensure the lowest and fairest rent possible.
- Challenge an increase. If there is no evidence for your landlord's figure, we negotiate so that an excessive demand is reduced and a fair open market rental value agreed.
- Meet the deadlines. Some leases give a tenant as little as 21 days to object to a proposed rent, so talk to us as soon as a notice arrives.
- Lower the rent at renewal. At a lease renewal it is common practice for rents to reduce, and we often negotiate a new rent below the old one.
TenantShop · North LondonThe rent was £28,000 a year. The landlord asked £52,000; we agreed £32,750, £19,250 a year less.
How we help with a rent review or lease renewal
We analyse your lease free of charge, negotiate on the evidence, and settle by agreement or, if it comes to it, arbitration.
Free lease analysis
We'll analyse your lease without charge and in confidence, and explain our fee options: fixed, performance-based, or both.
We negotiate on the evidence
We build your case from comparable rents, drawing on our own property database, and negotiate with the other side or their representative.
Agreement or arbitration
Most cases are settled by negotiation. If not, your lease may provide for arbitration or expert determination, and we'll put your case.
What really stood out was their calm, proactive approach to negotiation and how smoothly they managed the entire negotiation process from start to finish.
Talk to us early. Some leases set strict time limits for rent review notices, and missing one can be costly. Read: Time can be of the essence
Book a free lease analysisShop and restaurant rent reviews: your questions answered
Does a shop's trading affect its rent review?
No. At a rent review the rent is based on the fair open market rental value, which is not based on how well or badly the business is performing. A lease renewal is different: the terms are renegotiated, and the rent can fall as well as rise.
Read: The new gambling legislation vs commercial property on the high street
Can a neighbouring shop's rent be used as evidence?
Yes, but compare it per square foot, because a neighbour's higher rent may simply be for a bigger shop. A shop of 1,500 sq ft let at £30,000 a year pays £20 per sq ft; one of 1,000 sq ft at £25,000 a year pays £25 per sq ft: more per foot, despite the lower rent.
Why would a landlord agree to reduce a shop rent?
Because an empty shop costs the landlord money. At a lease renewal the tenant can vacate if the rent is excessive, and few landlords want a property with no rental income, no service charge or insurance contribution, and empty rates to pay. During the lease there is no official mechanism, but any rent can be agreed at any time, so it is always worth asking.
Before you negotiate: our 11-point rent review checklist
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Who will handle your rent review?
Our partners, Richard L Daniels and Charles Daniels, and our dedicated rent review team, who give personal attention at all times.
Richard L DanielsFounding partnerFounded the firm in 1966; five decades in commercial and industrial property.rld@richardlionel.co.uk
Charles DanielsPartnerFifteen years representing landlords and tenants on offices, industrial and retail space.cd@richardlionel.co.uk
Other commercial property we cover
Rent reviews and lease renewals on retail, office and industrial premises, and on medical, dental and veterinary practices, from 500 to 250,000 sq ft, for landlords and tenants across the UK.
Book your free lease analysis
Fill in the form and one of our rent review specialists will contact you for a no obligation conversation, in the strictest of confidence.
Or call now
020 7487 4451- Mobile07795 298 748
- Emailcd@richardlionel.co.uk
Articles
All articles
The New Gambling Legislation vs Commercial Property on the High Street
What the £2 limit on fixed-odds betting terminals meant for Landlords of betting shops, written in 2018, with what happened next.Read the article
Who Said Retail Is Dead?
In 2020 the headlines said the high street was finished. We kept letting shops in London.Read the article
How to Ask for a Rent Reduction
When a commercial Tenant can get the rent reduced, and why many Landlords would rather agree than lose a Tenant.Read the article