Grant of Commercial Leases

Before the grant of a lease to a prospective tenant and the terms that should be included in a lease and what should be required from a prospective tenant as a precondition to the grant of a new lease, the following vital factors require careful consideration:

• A lease should generally be a full repairing and insurance lease. In other words, the lease should obligate the tenant to carry out the repairs of a premises for a lease of a part or the whole of the building as appropriate and require the tenant to keep the premises adequately insured.
• The obligation for the tenant to pay for the insurance, service charge and other outgoings should be expressly incorporated in the lease.
• The landlord should agree with the tenant as to what activities are to be carried out at the property and allow an appropriate user clause to be inserted in the lease.
• The rent and the rent review period should also be agreed in advance.

In addition to the above, evidence of the financial standing, knowledge and the experience of the tenant should be a pre-requisite condition. The provision of the relevant evidence and reference letters should be requested from the tenant at the outset.

The grant of a commercial lease to any tenant will most certainly require the lender’s written consent if there exists a registered charge against the property; we will endeavour to obtain this consent from your lender in a timely manner. Most importantly prior to granting any lease to a prospective tenant it is imperative to scrutinise and consider what planning use the property has been afforded by the local authority. In the absence of a specific use the alternative would be for the landlord to allow the prospective tenant a right to make an appropriate application to the local authority for the required planning use.

The above considerations are not exhaustive we aim to discuss all your requirements and evaluate the legal capacity of the premises or property before a lease is issued.

Our Commercial Property Team offer a personal, friendly and professional service to all of our clients and will be able to assist you with your matter. If you have an enquiry and would like to speak with one of our specialist lawyers, please call us today on 0203 440 8000.