Who this service is for
Business tenants facing a rent review under an existing commercial lease — retailers, leisure and food and beverage operators, offices, industrial occupiers and multi-site portfolios across the UK and Ireland. I act for tenants only, so there is no conflict of interest with a landlord client.
What the instruction includes
- Reading the review clause and the rest of the lease, including assumptions, disregards, machinery and any deeming provisions
- Assembling and devaluing comparable evidence to an effective rent
- A written view of the defensible rental range before any figure is put to the landlord
- Negotiation with the landlord or their agent on your behalf
- Where agreement is not reached, referral to an arbitrator or independent expert and the preparation of your case
- A note of the settlement and the review dates to diarise for the rest of the term
What to send me
- The lease, together with any licences, deeds of variation and side letters
- Any rent review notice or proposal already received from the landlord
- Current rent demands showing the passing rent and any service charge
- Floor plans or a measured survey if you have one
- Details of your fit-out and any works you have carried out
- Correspondence with the landlord or their agent to date
How the instruction runs
- 1Free initial reviewA first look at the lease and the review date to say whether there is a case worth running and what is at stake.
- 2Clause constructionEstablishing precisely what the clause asks to be valued: what property, on what terms, at what date.
- 3EvidenceCollecting lettings and settlements, devaluing incentives, and analysing the local pitch.
- 4PositionAgreeing your target and walk-away figures before a number is exchanged.
- 5NegotiationPutting and defending your case with the landlord's surveyor.
- 6Third party if neededApplication to the RICS President for an arbitrator or independent expert, and preparation of your submission.
Fees
- Initial advice is free.
- Fees are agreed in advance before any work starts.
- On rent reviews, fees are often linked to the saving achieved against the landlord's opening figure.
Where I act
Instructions are taken across the UK and Ireland. Local market notes for the busiest markets:
For retailers running multiple branches, see our retail portfolio advice for coordinating lease events across the whole estate.
Request a free initial review
Send the lease and any notice you have received. I will tell you what is at stake and what the options are before any fee is agreed.
What the review clause actually says
Almost every dispute starts with the wording. Upward-only, open market, hypothetical term, assumptions and disregards, time of the essence, the machinery for appointing a third party — each phrase shifts value. Reviews are frequently settled at the wrong figure because the hypothetical letting the clause describes is not the letting that has actually happened.
The first job is therefore construction, not valuation: what property, on what terms, let to whom, at what date, is the clause asking us to value?
Evidence wins reviews
Landlords open with headline rents. The devil is in the incentives behind them — rent free beyond fitting out, capital contributions, stepped rents, break rights and turnover top-ups all need to be devalued back to an effective rent before a comparable is worth anything.
- Zoning of retail units in Zone A terms, with proper allowances for return frontage, shape and ancillary space
- Analysis of incentive packages to an effective headline rent
- Local trading evidence — footfall, vacancy, scheme performance, competing pitches
- Records of settlements as well as awards, weighted for how each was reached
How the process runs
Most reviews settle. Where they do not, the lease usually provides for an arbitrator or an independent expert, appointed by the RICS President on application. Timing matters: some clauses make time of the essence, others create deeming provisions where silence binds you to the landlord's figure. Diarising the review dates in a lease is the cheapest risk management available to an occupier.
Common questions
How much can rent rise at a review?
There is no cap unless the lease imposes one. The revised rent is whatever the open market rent is on the assumptions in the clause — which is why the evidence and the interpretation of the clause matter far more than any percentage rule of thumb.
What evidence decides the reviewed rent?
Lettings and settlements of genuinely comparable space, devalued to an effective rent after stripping out rent-free periods, capital contributions and stepped rents. Headline figures quoted by a landlord's agent are the starting point of the argument, not the answer to it.
When should I instruct a surveyor?
Ideally six to twelve months before the review date, and always before responding to a landlord's trigger notice or proposed figure.
Can my rent go down at review?
Only if the lease allows it. Most institutional leases are upward-only, so the review can hold the rent but not reduce it. Where the clause is open, falling markets can produce a reduction and the evidence needs to be assembled just as carefully.
What happens if the review date passes without agreement?
Unless time is of the essence, the review remains open and is settled later, usually backdated to the review date with interest in some leases. Late reviews are common and are not a reason to accept the landlord's figure.
How long does a rent review take to settle?
Straightforward negotiations settle in six to twelve weeks. Where a third party is appointed, arbitration or expert determination usually adds four to six months.
What will it cost me?
Initial advice is free. Fees are agreed in advance, and on reviews are often linked to the saving achieved against the landlord's opening figure.
Ask a question
Live assistant — commercial rent review surveyor
Ask anything about this topic and get an immediate answer drawn from this page. General guidance only — specific advice depends on your lease.
Talk it through
Initial advice is free — tenant side only.
Chris McGarrigle MRICS, chartered since 1989, acting for occupiers across England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland.
chris@mcgarrigle.comRelated guides
- Retail Rent ReviewRetail rent reviews for shop occupiers: Zone A analysis, devaluing incentives, turnover rents, and negotiating on high streets and in schemes.
- Rent Review ArbitrationHow rent review arbitration works under the Arbitration Act 1996: appointment, directions, submissions, awards, costs and when to settle instead.
- Rent Review Independent ExpertHow independent expert determination differs from arbitration at rent review — evidence, own knowledge, costs, liability and which favours the tenant.