Does your lease contain everything you need?
When taking a lease you need to ensure that it contains sufficient rights in order for you to use and enjoy the premises as you wish.
It is a common misconception by tenants that when they take a lease of a property that they will automatically have all the rights they need. The reality is in fact that if these rights are not specifically granted in the lease, then there is likely to be no legal right to use such right, For example:
- Rights of access; tenants may need to use shared corridors, accessways and staircases to the premises;
- Use of dedicated fire escapes;
- Use of any bin or bike stores outside the building;
- Use of any car parking spaces that are available.
Many people think (quite logically) that if there is perhaps a door to the rear of the building, they can go through it and use it as a fire escape or if there is a bin store at the rear of the building that they can store their bins there. In practice this may be the case but if there is no specific right in the lease granted (to use the door as a means of access or to store bins there), then the landlord could for example block up the door or redevelop the bin store and prevent such use.
You may need to walk down a path and up a staircase that is not leased to you to get to your practice premises. Your lease must provide you with a right of access over these areas otherwise you will be unable to access your own property. If the right is in the lease, your landlord cannot obstruct these rights or take them away.
If you need to use spaces in a car park owned by the landlord, you could have certain spaces included within the lease so that they form party of the property leased to you, meaning that no one else can use them though you become solely responsible for these spaces and their maintenance.
However, it is possible the landlord may prefer to grant you a right to use some of the spaces. If this is the case you should consider whether you need the right to exclusive use of certain spaces, meaning that no one else can park in them. In addition, how many spaces will you need? Do you need disabled person’s spaces? Who will look after and pay for the maintenance of the car park? Will you need signage erecting to make it clear they are for your use only. These points are best agreed at the outset to reduce any issues arising once the lease is in place and to avoid causing disruption / inconvenience once you are in occupation and running your business.
Alternatively, would a non-exclusive right to use any of the spaces (in common with other people who may use them) be sufficient for your needs? You may be competing with others for spaces and find the spaces are often full or an informal basis may be all that is needed. It will depend on the individual premises and your business needs.
It is important that when taking a lease, you ensure that all the rights you require are included within the lease so that not only you can enjoy the full use and enjoyment of the premises without interference from the landlord or anyone else, but also so that the lack of sufficient rights does not cause you any problems should you wish to sell the business and leasehold premises in the future.
Should you need any assistance with the above issues please contact our specialist commercial property lawyers:
