Blog
The True Value of a Schedule of Condition for a Commercial Lease
Thursday 25th July 2019
Carl O'Boyle BSc MRICS FCIOB MFPWS
It never ceases to amaze me the amount of parties taking on new leases of properties that do not have a schedule of their existing condition carried out before signing the lease.
We recently had a client that phoned us up in Pinner where the landlord decided that the roof above her small office needed to be replaced fully.
This roof is in a conservation area and she has been told that the cost of replacing the roof will be in the tens of thousands of rather than in the thousands, and she is responsible for 50% of the cost of replacing the roof along with the other three tenants in the property.
There was no schedule of condition carried out prior to taking on the lease so there is no pre-existing condition of the roof available to compare like for like.
The roof is over 400 years old so therefore there is a liability that if the landlord decides to replace the roof that you inherit all the historical defects that this roof might have.
The actual cost of replacing the roof is not fixed and the increase is greatly putting a huge strain on cash flows for small businesses.
By having existing schedule of condition prior to signing your lease you would be able to state that the roof had deteriorated substantially before you took over the lease and therefore your obligation to pay repairs is much reduced.
Without this schedule you do not have a line in the sand on which to argue your case.
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This article was written by Carl O'Boyle BSc MRICS FCIOB MFPWS. Carl is a full professional member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, a member of the Faculty of Party Wall Surveyors and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building for which he currently sits on the CIOB professional conduct committee and adjudications panel.
If you need a Schedule of Condition or Dilapidations Report in Middlesex or the surrounding areas then please call us at our office on 0208 426 1448.
