Who this service is for
Business tenants whose lease is approaching its term date, whether the tenancy is protected by the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 or contracted out. Tenant side only, across the UK and Ireland.
What the instruction includes
- Checking whether the tenancy is protected and what notices have been served
- Diarising every statutory deadline, including the date by which a court application must be made
- Advice on serving or responding to a section 25 or section 26 notice
- Market evidence for the renewal rent and a total occupancy cost model across the proposed term
- Negotiation of the full package — term, break rights, rent free, repairing obligation, schedule of condition, service charge caps and alienation
- Interim rent advice, and support through a contested renewal where the case goes to court
What to send me
- The current lease and any licences or deeds of variation
- Any section 25 or section 26 notice, with the envelope or email showing when it arrived
- Rent demands and recent service charge accounts
- Any schedule of condition taken at the start of the lease
- Details of works, fit-out or alterations you have carried out
- Your plans for the site — stay, downsize, relocate or exit
How the instruction runs
- 1Free initial reviewConfirming protection, deadlines and the realistic options.
- 2StrategyDeciding whether to serve first, wait, or run a parallel relocation search.
- 3NoticesServing or responding to the statutory notice within time.
- 4Evidence and termsRental evidence assembled and the whole term sheet priced, not just the rent.
- 5NegotiationAgreeing heads of terms with the landlord's surveyor.
- 6Completion or courtDocumenting the new lease with your solicitor, or preparing the case if the renewal is contested.
Fees
- Initial advice is free.
- Fees are agreed in advance before any work starts.
- Expert evidence, where it is required, is charged on a time basis at an agreed hourly rate — never on a success basis.
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.
Protect the terms, not just the number
A rent reduction bought with a longer unbroken term, a full repairing liability or an uncapped service charge is often a poor trade. I model the total occupancy cost across the proposed term before agreeing any headline figure.
- Term length and tenant break options
- Repairing standard and any schedule of condition
- Service charge caps and exclusions
- Assignment and underletting flexibility
- Rent free and landlord contributions on renewal
Statutory route or open negotiation
Where the tenancy is protected by the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954, the statutory machinery gives real leverage: the right to remain in occupation, the right to apply to court, and interim rent. Where the tenancy is contracted out, the negotiation is purely commercial and the relocation option becomes your strongest card.
Timing
Renewals should be started twelve months out. Late instruction narrows the options: you lose the credible threat of relocation, the ability to run a parallel search, and often the chance to serve first.
Common questions
Do I have to accept the landlord's proposed new rent?
No. A landlord's Section 25 proposal is an opening position, not a determination. If the tenancy is protected, the court fixes the rent on statutory criteria if the parties cannot agree.
What does a lease renewal surveyor do?
Advises on notices and deadlines, values the new rent, negotiates all lease terms, instructs and works with solicitors, and gives expert evidence if the renewal is contested.
Can the landlord refuse to renew my lease?
Only on one of the statutory grounds in section 30 of the 1954 Act — persistent late payment, breaches, redevelopment or own occupation among them — and several of those carry compensation.
Should I ask for a shorter term?
Often yes. A five-year term with a tenant break at year three preserves flexibility, and in a soft market landlords will usually concede the break rather than lose the income.
Do I have to accept the landlord's proposed rent?
No. The figure in a section 25 notice is an opening position, not a determination. The rent is what the market evidence supports for the hypothetical new lease.
What else is negotiable besides rent?
Term, break rights, rent-free period, repairing obligation, a schedule of condition, service charge caps and alienation provisions all move at renewal.
Ask a question
Live assistant — lease renewal 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
- Commercial Lease RenewalHow commercial lease renewal works for business tenants: protected and contracted-out tenancies, notices, new rent, new terms and interim rent.
- Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 Lease RenewalPart II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 explained for business tenants: security of tenure, Sections 25, 26 and 30, interim rent and compensation.
- Retail Lease RenewalRetail lease renewal advice for shop, leisure and F&B tenants: rent, term, break rights, service charge and portfolio strategy on the high street.