subject: Offices to Lease - Useful Points you should Consider [print this page] Offices to Lease - Useful Points you should Consider
You have contemplated to gear up or build your own company and are now thinking of taking offices to lease of some company building, then take a short time to contemplate the four pieces of advice below:
A - Tenants Details Give the name of the new tenant (making certain you give the proper lawful entity ie: sole trader name, limited company name, names of all partners) and the dwelling; if it is a office then also give the company No. and registered office dwelling. Also furnish any trading name if this be different.
B - Your referees details - You will need to submit names, addresses and phone numbers - you will normally to tender references from any present landlord, your solicitors, your accountants, a principal supplier and your bank. If it is a new company then you may have to obtain personal and bank references for each individual and if a new company, then for each personal guarantor as the company will not have a history.
C - The rent Propose an tender for the rent you are willing to pay. This is often talkable so do consider making a lower offer. Be aware that rents can be subject to VAT dependant on whether the landlord has chosen to tax or not and although this makes no variance to the amount you pay because you can claim back it, you will have to have enough cash-flow to pay the VAT before you can redeem it but your accountant who can advise you further on this point.
D - The term of the lease Once more this is usually talkable. Relying on the area in which you perform, leases tend to be in functionate of 3 or 5 years. Duration of 3, 5, 6, 10 and 15 years are quite commonplace. Generally the smaller and economical the premises the more likely that the landlord will allow to a lower lease phase and the same is true of under-performing regions where there is a significant turnover of tenants (an area to avoid!).
Landlords are inclined to like lengthy terms rather than shorter but if you are nervous about taking on a long lease, deliberate considering a tenants only break option, say at the exit of year 3 and perhaps also further on in the term. Consider how long you can hold out for fiscally if things go horribly wrong and suggest a break at that stage.
Unhappily many businesses seem to fail, so it is essential that you work out your exit scheme in advance. It is so much better to have a clean way out from the lease after which your accountability will cease rather than to try to find someone to take an allotment to sub-lease from you as you will remain held to account for the performance of any assignees responsibilities and for the lease especially if you have a sub-tenant.
