Five tips for tenants negotiating a commercial lease

By Lancashire Business View

25 Sep 2017

By Ian Liddle, partner at Farleys.

It can take a lot of time to secure the perfect home for your business, but the work isn’t over even when you’ve found the ideal premises.

Your lease is likely to be one of your business’ biggest outgoings, so it’s vital to negotiate favourable terms in your commercial lease agreement so that it doesn’t become a liability further down the line. With that in mind: Ensure your lease is within the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954. This means that at the end of the term you will have the right to renew the lease automatically when the old one expires and the landlord can only object on certain specified grounds. Ask for a rent-free period. Landlords are keen to get tenants into occupation and will frequently agree significant rent free periods to avoid having to pay business rates themselves. A rent free period at the start of a tenancy can help enormously with your cash flow, especially if you are a start-up and have very little money coming in initially. If you don’t ask, you don’t get! Consider a break clause (a right to end the lease early). This gives you flexibility in that although you might commit to a five year lease, you could bring it to an end on each anniversary of the term by giving the landlord an agreed period of notice. Think carefully about who is taking the lease. Ideally you should take it in a separate limited company rather than your own name, as a lease is very onerous obligation and can expose you to significant personal liability. Not all landlords will agree to this and may look for some security if you want to take the lease in the name of a limited company with little or no financial history. Carefully consider your repairing obligations. You should either try to limit your repairing obligation to looking after, say, the interior only, or, if you have to accept a responsibility to repair the inside and the outside of the building, limit it by reference to a Schedule of Condition. This is a record of the condition of the premises at the start of the lease, making it clear that you will keep the property in no worse repair than the condition it was in when you first acquired it.

Latest news

1

Breck to start £15m Blackpool affordable homes and retail development Cropper Road, Blackpool

Breck to start £15m Blackpool affordable homes and retail development

14 Oct 2025

2

New help for Blackpool businesses to access growth money John Fallon speaking at the meeting

New help for Blackpool businesses to access growth money

14 Oct 2025

3

Fuuse raises further £6m as it heads to profitability COO Nik Southworth, CEO Michael Gibson, CFO Sonia Davies.

Fuuse raises further £6m as it heads to profitability

13 Oct 2025

4

Preferred developer named for strategic site Barnfield named as preferred developer for site

Preferred developer named for strategic site

13 Oct 2025

5

Warden completes hospital improvement work Warden Hospital

Warden completes hospital improvement work

13 Oct 2025

Background image for hub sign up block

LBV Hub

Leverage Lancashire Business View platforms

Post your news
Post your events
Post your offers
Build your network
Improve your SEO
Gain coverage in the magazine
Sign-up
Events
CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course

Preston Campus, Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 17:00

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course

Preston Campus, Preston, PR1 2HE

08:00 - 17:00

Help to grow management course
Help to grow - barriers to growth.png.png
LBV Hub Seminars
26 Sep 2025 - 16 Dec 2025

Help to grow management course

Preston Campus , Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 15:00

The New Employee Rights Landscape: Day One Compliance Essentials
EventBrite NORi - 15th Oct 2025 Webinar.png.png
LBV Hub Webinar
15 Oct 2025 - 15 Oct 2025

The New Employee Rights Landscape: Day One Compliance Essentials

Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Teams, PR253XH

13:30 - 15:00

Unlocking major project opportunities in the North West
Lancs-cham-logo.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
15 Oct 2025 - 15 Oct 2025

Unlocking major project opportunities in the North West

Strathmore Hotel, Morecambe, LA4 5AP

08:00 - 10:00

The Autumn Re set - pour me a wine
LBV Advert_Autumn Reset 1200 x 630px.png.png
LBV Hub Networking
16 Oct 2025 - 16 Oct 2025

The Autumn Re set - pour me a wine

The Artistry House , Preston , PR1 3JJ

17:30 - 19:30

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire
LBV Header (26).png.png
LBV Hub Networking
16 Oct 2025 - 16 Oct 2025

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire

Stanley House, Blackburn, BB2 7NP

11:30 - 14:15

October Freelancer Meet-Up
LBV Hub Networking
16 Oct 2025 - 16 Oct 2025

October Freelancer Meet-Up

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

10:00 - 11:30

Women scaling up Blackpool Fylde and Wyre
LBV Hub Seminars
22 Oct 2025 - 09 Jan 2026

Women scaling up Blackpool Fylde and Wyre

The Small Business Academy, Blackpool, FY4 5JX

09:30 - 15:30

HR Essentials for pubs, bars and licensed venues
EventBrite NORi - 22nd Oct Webinar.png.png
LBV Hub Webinar
22 Oct 2025 - 22 Oct 2025

HR Essentials for pubs, bars and licensed venues

Online - Teams, Leyland, PR253XH

13:30 - 15:00

RISE - Lancashire's unique leadership programme for women
thumbnail_Emma Weston Illustration WENDY BOWERS RISE Illustrstion.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
22 Oct 2025 - 18 Mar 2026

RISE - Lancashire's unique leadership programme for women

East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce, Clayton le Moors, BB5 5JR

09:30 - 15:30

Chamber Business Lunch – October
LBV Hub Networking
24 Oct 2025 - 24 Sep 2025

Chamber Business Lunch – October

Lancaster Golf Club, Lancaster, LA2 0AJ

11:00 - 13:30

Advertise with us

Reaching 50,000 members, our print, digital and event platforms offer a fantastic way to raise your business profile and help you grow.

Find out more LBV124 Online Graphic
Subscribe now

Weekly news bulletin