Tenants with rent reviews due in 2009 are lucky people, as landlords ought to find it impossible to prove any increase in rents for this year. However from the last recession, they’ve learnt several tactics that, once again, are being re-deployed to push up rents.

For example:

• Landlords delay in serving the rent review trigger notice until a year or more after the review date in the hope that the tenant will roll over in cases of punitive interest provisions on the back rent!
• They try to get tenants to pay a cumulative RPI rent increase when the rent review clause is to ‘open market rental value,’ as at the review date!
• Landlords quote a rent based on ‘their’ floor areas; which just so happens to include tenant’s improvements such as mezzanines etc!
• Landlords present a selection of headline rents to the tenant which purport show an increased rent, yet in reality, fail to disclose rent-free periods and other incentives!
• Landlords’ agents ‘bully’ tenants by threatening Third Party Appointments proceedings, which are often at the tenant’s cost.

At BMH we want all tenants to avoid these pitfalls. Use us as we need to be able to engage the landlord early on in order to take the initiative and remember; we only act for occupiers. If you have an overdue rent review or one is due shortly, then please contact Adam Schofield (schofield@bmh.co.uk) with your details for some initial advice. Adam is available on 01753 747420.