England and Wales lease parties: choose rent review help

Which type of rent review help fits the task?

Choose a chartered valuation surveyor for rental value and comparables, a commercial-property solicitor for clause interpretation and documents, or RICS appointment where negotiations have failed and the lease provides for third-party determination.[1][2][6]

Check the actual rent-review clause and any live deadline before instructing an adviser. Notice and counter-notice requirements depend on the lease wording and the facts; a supplier’s example is not a deadline for your lease.[1][2] Ask a commercial-property solicitor to confirm the required action and service method where the position is uncertain.

• Chartered valuation surveyor: suited to rental valuation, comparable transactions, valuation submissions, negotiation and representation for landlords or tenants.[1][3][4]
• Commercial-property solicitor: suited to interpreting the clause, checking notices and procedure, addressing liability questions and preparing the rent-review memorandum.[2][5]
• RICS appointment service: suited to an unresolved dispute where the lease provides for an Arbitrator or Independent Expert. RICS appoints the decision-maker rather than acting as a party’s valuation or legal adviser.[6]

Garness Jones says parties do not necessarily need an adviser when they can agree the review themselves.[4]

Compare five commercial rent review options

BTG Eddisons

• Scope: Valuation reports, comparable-market assessment, negotiation and help with disputed rent adjustments.[3]
• Suited to (provider description): Landlords or occupiers seeking surveyor-led valuation, negotiation or representation.[3]
• Evidence of expertise: BTG Eddisons reports RICS accreditation, more than 180 years of property experience, over 100 chartered surveyors, 30 offices and 450 experts. It also reports 100% reviewer recommendation on Reviews.IO.[3]

Garness Jones

• Scope: Current rental valuation, local-market research, negotiation, professional submissions and representation.[4]
• Suited to (provider description): Landlords or tenants seeking Yorkshire and Lincolnshire market knowledge or early preparation before a review date.[4]
• Evidence of expertise: The firm says it has acted for thousands of landlords and tenants across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire.[4]

LegalVision UK

• Scope: Advice on lease terms, notices, the review process, disputes and rent-review memoranda.[2]
• Suited to (provider description): Commercial landlords or businesses needing legal interpretation and documentation rather than rental valuation alone.[2]
• Evidence of expertise: LegalVision publishes commercial rent-review guidance and offers access to specialist lawyers through its broader fixed-fee legal membership.[2]

Star Legal Solicitors

• Scope: Advice on lease negotiations, rent-review provisions, renewals, property disputes and drafting review mechanisms.[5]
• Suited to (provider description): Landlords, tenants, investors or developers dealing with a new clause, ongoing review, interpretation issue, break-clause interaction, property change or liability question.[5]
• Evidence of expertise: Star Legal publishes guidance describing its commercial lease and rent-review practice.[5]

RICS Commercial Rent Review Appointment Service

• Scope: Appointment of an Arbitrator or Independent Expert from the President’s Panel, rather than valuation representation.[6]
• Suited to (provider description): Parties unable to agree where the lease provides a third-party determination procedure.[6]
• Evidence of expertise: RICS reports more than 40 years’ experience, assessed and monitored appointees, and inclusion as appointing body in 99% of commercial leases.[6]

Published price

RICS publishes a £425 administration fee for making an Arbitrator or Independent Expert appointment, but does not state that this covers the appointee’s professional fees, the substantive determination, VAT or case costs.[6]

Use this clause-and-comparables checklist

1. Map the clause. Record the review date and method, valuation assumptions and disregards, notice requirements, counter-notice provisions, negotiation period and dispute route.[1][2]
2. Identify the mechanism. Establish whether the review uses open-market valuation, indexation, a fixed increase, turnover rent or another structure.[1][2][3][5]
3. Test an open-market proposal. Examine the property’s location and condition, relevant lease terms, incentives and comparable transactions.[1][2][3][5] Check whether the clause disregards matters such as the tenant’s business or tenant-made improvements.[2]
4. Challenge the comparables. Ask why each transaction is relevant, which lease terms differ and how those differences affect the proposed rent.[1][2][3][5]
5. Check procedure precisely. Confirm what must be served, on whom, by which permitted method and by what deadline. Record the clause relied on and the adviser responsible for checking it; do not assume a standard counter-notice period.[1][2]

When should a surveyor and solicitor work together?

Combined advice may be useful where a surveyor can assess market rent but the parties disagree over assumptions, disregards, notice validity, liability or the meaning of the clause.[1][2][3][5]

• Solicitor: interprets the lease, advises on notices and disputed provisions, and prepares or reviews legal documentation.[2][5]
• Chartered valuation surveyor: analyses comparable transactions, values the premises, prepares valuation submissions and negotiates the proposed rent.[3][4]

Using both professions closes different expertise gaps; it does not guarantee a better financial outcome.

When negotiations fail

RICS appointment may be available when the parties cannot agree and the lease provides for referral to an Arbitrator or Independent Expert.[6] The clause governs whether referral is available and the appointee’s authority and procedure.[1][6]

Do not treat arbitration and independent expertise as interchangeable. RICS presents them as distinct options, although other guidance uses the terms inconsistently; follow the wording of the lease.[2][6] The available guidance does not establish uniform differences in powers, evidence rules, procedure or cost consequences.

RICS appoints the decision-maker.[6] A party may still require a valuation surveyor to analyse comparables and prepare submissions, or a solicitor to address interpretation and procedural issues.[2][3][4]

Manage payments and record the result

Ask the solicitor to confirm the rent payable while the review is unresolved and the lease’s provisions for backdating, arrears and interest. Garness Jones describes a situation in which current rent continues during negotiations and an agreed increase is backdated; that example should not override the payment obligations in your lease.[4]

LegalVision recommends recording the result in a signed rent-review memorandum stating the review date, agreed rent and effective date, including where the rent remains unchanged.[2]

What to confirm with each provider

Request a current written proposal for the specific premises and review. Distinguish the adviser’s fees from the RICS appointment administration fee, the appointed decision-maker’s charges and any other case costs.

• Scope: Request a written list of included and excluded work covering valuation, comparables, negotiation, clause interpretation, notices, documentation and third-party submissions.
• Fees: Ask for the fee basis, VAT treatment, disbursements, appointee or case costs, payment stages and charges if the scope expands.
• Experience: Ask who will handle the matter and about relevant property, local-market and commercial lease experience.[3][4][5]
• Contract terms: Confirm any minimum term, authority limits, cancellation and refund rights, and the cost of ending the appointment early.
• Evidence: Ask how the proposed rent reflects the clause’s assumptions, disregards, incentives and comparable transactions.[1][2][3][5]

References

1. RICS Find a Surveyor – Commercial rent reviews (ricsfirms.com)
2. What is the Commercial Rent Review Process? | LegalVision UK (legalvision.co.uk)
3. Rent Review for a Commercial Lease | BTG Eddisons (eddisons.com)
4. How to handle a rent review on your commercial property lease | Garness Jones (garnessjones.co.uk)
5. Understanding Rent Review Clauses in Commercial Leases | Star Legal Solicitors (star-legal.co.uk)
6. Commercial Rent Review Appointment Service (rics.org)