RICS has launched new mandatory requirements to aid commercial tenants with lease negotiations, with the backing of multiple professional and consumer organisations.  

The professional statement, Code for leasing business premises, will come into force in 1 September 2020 and is the first time that mandatory requirements have been set for RICS members relating to lease negotiations.

Bringing an existing industry code into formal RICS status, the professional statement has already received support from the Law Society, BPF (British Property Federation), REVO (Retail Evolution), BCO (British Council for Offices) and the FSB (Federation of Small Business).

Code for leasing business premises comes from pan-industry discussions to improve the quality and fairness of negotiations on lease terms for tenants and landlords. It also sets out to improve the efficiency of the current lease negotiation process for all involved.  

Paul Bagust, RICS global property standards director, commented: “The UK’s commercial market is changing; retail is facing some of its toughest times as consumers change the way they interact with their highstreets. The office sector is being transformed by flexible work space. By working with FSB, the Law Society, REVO, BCO and BPF we have been able to take existing industry guidance and cement them into RICS formal requirements.”