Property Occupier Advisory Support Services
Ensuring your property is aligned to your business requirements and costs are minimised.
Your commercial property can be your largest operating cost after your people, so we understand the impact that it can have on your business.
We also understand that your expertise is in managing your business and property needs to fit with your overall business plan.
Our occupier advisory services
Our comprehensive property occupier services are designed to support you, by either managing the portfolio for you or supporting your in-house team to ensure your portfolio is a true asset.
A national firm with specialist regional market knowledge and international reach, we work with a wide range of occupiers – from SMEs to multi-national corporations, both in the UK and abroad.
We help with the full lifecycle of your property needs, working with you to ensure your properties support your business strategy, to reduce your property overheads, mitigate potential risk and maximise opportunities to deliver commercial advantage.
We have used Vail Williams since 2009 for all our properties. They have consistently provided excellent customer service, timely advice and generated significant savings. We would not hesitate in recommending Vail Williams.
Robert Wilson Head of Property & Facilities UK Sopra Steria.
Our people, your partners
Our partner-led team of experienced property advisers will work as an extension of your own, providing comprehensive property advice which aligns both your business and property strategies.
We take time to understand why your business is doing what it is doing before we recommend the best ways to fine tune your property strategy.
Once we understand your goals, we will work with you to develop a dynamic forward plan – whether you are looking to move premises, change working practices, improve productivity or benchmark and reduce costs.
Our experience with Vail Williams and their team of development consultants has been excellent – a true partnership. It is also really useful that they have equally adept colleagues for other areas like Planning, Building Consultancy, Property Asset Management and Business Space – a truly integrated service.
Nicki Becker, Western Europe, Reward, Property and Facilities Director, Molson Coors.
Strategy
Advice
Delivery
Ensuring your property meets your business needs
Too often, companies can be held back in their business plans by their property portfolio not meeting their business needs. We will assist in asset managing your portfolio, whether that is relocating, resizing or undertaking refurbishment works to make the portfolio fit for purpose.
Agile working and collaboration
In today’s world the ‘workplace’ is constantly being redefined. Regardless of your working policy, we will provide the necessary strategic workplace advice to ensure yours meets policy requirements.
Merger and acquisition activity
When considering either a corporate sale or acquisition, there will usually be a property perspective to consider. We will help to overlay physical property liability with legal tenure, to ensure all aspects of property asset transfer are covered.
Property cost management
The true cost of property is often unreported and unchallenged. We provide forensic property cost reviews to ensure costs are both transparent and correct – whether it is the rent, business rates or service charge that you are paying.
Sustainability
We recognise that we all have a vital role to play in protecting our environment and Vail Williams can assist in maximising the sustainability of your buildings.
Workplace analysis
We provide the tools to enable you to analyse current workplace practices and will help you to define and implement new ways of working.
Merger and acquisition activity
When considering either a corporate sale or acquisition, there is usually a property perspective to consider. We will overlay the physical property liability with the legal tenure to ensure all aspects of the property transfer of assets are assessed and accounted for.
Property cost management
The true cost of property is often unreported and unchallenged. We provide a forensic property cost review, ensuring costs are both transparent and correct – whether it is the rent you are paying, the rates or service charge.
Property risk management
We will support you to ensure all risks are mitigated, from the physical maintenance of a building or by providing valuation and liability assessments for property accounting and buildings insurance purposes, to ensuring the leases and the legal matters in relation to your property are properly managed.
In the event there are major works or moves planned, we can form part of the project management team which manages the extension, fit or move on your behalf.
Portfolio management
Whether you are looking for the management of non-operational property or your whole portfolio, we can maintain all your property records through our comprehensive database. We will also report on upcoming lease events, as well as manage all property related payments on your behalf.
Property acquisition and disposal
Acquisition – from taking a detailed brief we will undertake a comprehensive market search presenting suitable options, organising itineraries for viewing tours; shortlisting; longlisting and negotiations. For disposal assembling best in class team with regular reporting on interest and status of negotiations.
Transaction management
Our job is not finished until legal exchange or completion. Good transaction management is critical to ensuring property and legal due diligence is undertaken in good time with regular management of solicitors to understand stage of legal negotiation and resolving issues.
Project management
Effectively leading, planning and executing a project is critical to the success. Our PMO function applies Prince 2 principles to ensure projects for clients are successful and mitigate risks.
Lease events: lease renewals, rent reviews, break options
Aligning lease events with contract requirements or ensuring flexibility with growth plans as well as cost mitigation on rent reviews. Our data management (below) assists in ensuring you are in control of all events and any relevant notice periods.
Dilapidations
From ensuring sufficient accounting accruals are made to planning dilapidations and exit strategies our multi-disciplinary approach ensures liabilities are mitigated.
Property asset management
Becoming a reluctant landlord having to sublet or manage property when it is not your core business can be a burden. We are able to lighten that burden managing sublets invoicing rents and service charges and credit control.
Facilities management
Using our specialist team we can provide FM consultancy or on site support to ensure properties are run smoothly, maintained and compliant.
Business rates advice
From budgeting advice to support with duty to notify to managing checks of liability, challenge to the rating assessment or managing a rating appeal.
Service charge management
Our team can assist in preparing service charge budgets, scrutinize and challenge third party expenditure as well as undertaking benchmarking.
Data management
It is imperative to collect, organise, analyse, and verify all lease, licence and tenancy information to ensure you are ware of all liabilities and lease events and notices.
Occupier Advisory FAQs
Repairing obligations and dilapidations
What are my repairing obligations?
Tenants often assume they are only responsible for damage they cause. However, in many commercial leases, the tenant is responsible for putting the property into, and keeping it in, a good state of repair, which can include repairing pre-existing issues. To limit your exposure to repairing liabilities, Vail Williams can help through pre-acquisition surveys and Schedules of Condition.
How can I protect myself from pre-existing damage?
You can protect yourself by commissioning a Schedule of Condition, which provides a detailed record of the property’s state at the start of the lease. This can limit your liability for repairs at the end of your lease term. Vail Williams can prepare extensive Schedules of Condition in both photographic and written form.
What is a dilapidations claim?
At the end of the lease, your landlord can serve a “Schedule of Dilapidations” detailing outstanding repairs, maintenance, or decoration requirements needed to put property back to the same state it was at lease start. Dilapidations claims can prove costly. To guard against this and provide you with more cost-certainty, Vail Williams can help by preparing a Schedule of Condition at lease start, as well as negotiating and disputing your landlord’s dilapidations claim. We also advise that you budget for potential dilapidations claims.
Ending or transferring a lease
Can I get out of my lease early without a break clause?
Without a break clause, a tenant can only end the lease early by “surrendering the lease” with the landlord’s agreement, or by assigning or subletting. Vail Williams can provide strategic advice on the best strategy to pursue, informed by local market conditions.
Can I assign or sublet the property?
Most commercial leases place restrictions on a tenant’s ability to assign (transfer the lease) or sublet. You therefore need to understand what conditions and fees your landlord can impose. Vail Williams can advise you on the best strategy to pursue based on market conditions and what you want to achieve.
What happens if I assign the lease to someone else?
Even after assigning the lease, you might be required to provide an “Authorised Guarantee Agreement” (AGA), which makes you liable if the new tenant defaults. In the process of assigning a lease, you need to ensure that what the landlord is proposing is reasonable and in line with the lease agreement. Vail Williams can help you negotiate this at the start of your lease, as well as providing strategic advice on whether a surrender and regrant could be more appropriate.
How do I negotiate a new lease?
What are the key terms?
It is important to get clarity on the core lease provisions, including the length of the term, rent and payment schedules, obligations on repair and how the property needs to be returned to the landlord, rent reviews, and break clauses. Vail Williams can ensure that you are protected by negotiating terms on your behalf.
Are the terms negotiable?
While some landlords may state otherwise, the terms of a new commercial lease are typically negotiable. Vail Williams can help identify areas for negotiation to ensure you have an agreed market rent and rent-free period, and you are not signing up to onerous lease provisions.
Is a rent-free period possible?
For a new lease, particularly for properties requiring extensive fit-out work, you may be able to negotiate a rent-free period. It is also important be aware of what is normal in the market when it comes to rent and rent-free periods. Vail Williams can help you negotiate the right terms based on the local market.
Is the lease protected under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954?
This is a critical question because the Act gives tenants an automatic right to renew their lease on the same terms. Landlords often seek to “exclude” this protection, and you must understand the implications of this, particularly if you are undertaking extensive fit-out or installing equipment that would be expensive to move. Vail Williams can help negotiate relevant protections.
Break clauses
How does a break clause work?
Businesses need to know the specific conditions for exercising a break clause, including the exact date and the required notice period. Ideally, it is important to agree conditions for a break that are not onerous, such as notice periods, serving of notices, payment of rent or rents or vacant possession. Vail Williams can help negotiate lease terms relating to break clauses. We can also advise with your solicitors on how to successfully exercise your break clause when the time comes.
What happens if I miss the deadline?
A missed or improperly served break notice is legally ineffective, meaning the lease will continue for its full term. This is a common and costly mistake. Vail Williams can help mitigate this risk by hosting critical lease information on our Digital Portfolio Management Platform.
What are the conditions for exercising a break?
Many break clauses have strict conditions, such as giving “vacant possession” and ensuring all rent and other payments are up to date. Businesses frequently ask what is required to satisfy these conditions. This is a very complex area – other conditions include payment of rent, and it is important to look at the definition of rent, which may include service charges, interest on late payment or a penalty. Vail Williams, with your solicitor’s advice can help you successfully exercise your break clause.
Rent and other costs
Will there be a rent review?
For leases over five years, it is common to have a rent review clause. It is important for you to understand the timing of reviews and how the new rent will be calculated. A detailed understanding of the wording of the rent review clause is critical, and Vail Williams can assist in ensuring you are paying the right rent.
Is VAT payable on the rent?
The answer depends on whether the landlord has “opted to tax” the property. If they have, you must pay VAT on the rent, which is a significant consideration, especially for non-VAT-registered businesses. This is usually identified within the lease contract. This is a very important consideration for charities in particular, and Vail Williams can assist in your lease review.
Is the rent review "upwards-only"?
This is a traditional but now less common practice where the rent can never decrease, even if market rents fall. Vail Williams can ensure that you are market testing your rent. Upwards only could mean that, in case of a falling market, that rent should stay the same and not necessarily increase.
Will I have to pay a service charge?
In multi-occupied buildings, the landlord will pass on the cost of maintaining common areas through a service charge. You will want to know what this covers and how your proportion is calculated. Vail Williams can assist in auditing charges to ensure that you are paying the right amount for services provided by the landlord under the lease and ensure you are not overcharged.
Repairing obligations and dilapidations
What are my repairing obligations?
Tenants often assume they are only responsible for damage they cause. However, in many commercial leases, you are responsible for putting the property into, and keeping it in, a good state of repair. This can even include repairing pre-existing issues. Vail Williams can limit your repairing obligations through pre-acquisition surveys, Schedules of Condition or by negotiating lease terms accordingly.
How can I protect myself from pre-existing damage?
You can protect yourself from liability for pre-existing damage by commissioning a Schedule of Condition. This is a detailed record of the property’s state at the start of the lease and can limit your liability for repairs at lease end. Vail Williams can prepare extensive Schedules of Condition in photographic and written form.
What is a dilapidations claim?
At the end of the lease, a landlord can serve a “Schedule of Dilapidations”. This is a claim for costs relating to outstanding repair, maintenance and decoration requirements. You will want to understand what this means for your final costs at lease end and should budget for dilapidations costs accordingly. Vail Williams can assist in preparing accruals for dilapidations in company accounts, and negotiating and disputing a landlord’s dilapidations claim.
Ending or transferring a lease
Can I get out of my lease early without a break clause?
Without a break clause, you can only end the lease early by “surrendering the lease” with the landlord’s agreement, or by assigning or subletting. Vail Williams can advise on the best strategy to pursue for your business based on market conditions and your objectives.
Can I assign or sublet the property?
Most commercial leases place restrictions on a tenant’s ability to assign (transfer the lease) or sublet. You will want to understand what conditions and fees the landlord can impose on you. Vail Williams can advise you on the best strategy for your business, informed by market conditions and the terms of your lease.
What happens if I assign the lease to someone else?
Even after assigning the lease, you, as the original tenant, may be required to provide an “Authorised Guarantee Agreement” (AGA). This makes you liable if the new tenant defaults. In the process of assigning a lease, you need to ensure that what the landlord is proposing is reasonable and in line with the lease agreement. Vail Williams can help you negotiate this at lease start, or we can advise you whether lease surrender and regrant would be more appropriate.
