Landlords in the UK face a range of challenges – from troublesome tenants to complicated tax affairs. If you’re letting out the property for commercial use, then you’ll have a slightly different set of things to consider than if you were letting out places of residence. Whether you’re just starting as a commercial landlord, or you’ve already established your business, it’s worth taking stock of the pitfalls, to minimise the chance you’ll fall into one of them.
Be responsive
A responsive landlord will tend to enjoy a good reputation and a better relationship with tenants. Moreover, there are certain requests that you’re legally advised to reply to promptly. If the tenant wishes to assign, sub-let, or modify the property, for example, then they might seek your permission – but if you withhold the consent for too long, it might be considered an ‘unreasonable delay’, which might effectively mean that your tenant gets their way.
Don’t neglect the service charge
You’ll need to be open with your tenants about what’s included in the service charge, and when you expect the service charge to be paid. In cases where communication breaks down, your tenant might stop paying because the services aren’t being provided, which leads to services being further withheld, and so on in a vicious circle. Keeping the channels of communication open, and having the plan to collect debts, is essential.
Breaking Tenancy
You’ll need to give a substantial amount of notice when you’re ending a tenancy since the period was extended massively in every part of the UK during the Covid-19 pandemic. If you have a break clause agreed upon, then this will give you greater wriggle room if the tenant should go into arrears. You might include also a ‘forfeiture clause’ which triggers the moment arrears are entered into.
Anticipate dilapidation
You should think about the state of repair that a property is going to be in at the end of the lease and work this into the tenancy agreement. If a tenant fails to keep their side of the bargain, then you might hold them to account for so-called ‘dilapidations’. To give these claims the best chance of success, you might bring in a surveyor to provide an impartial assessment. Landlord insurance might help you to deal with the risk of this kind, too.
Disposing of old items
If a tenant leaves the property and doesn’t take their belongings with them, then you might be tempted to simply throw everything in a skip. But you’ll want to give your tenant a reasonable opportunity to come and collect their stuff. This will prevent them from later claiming that something valuable was disposed of without their consent.
