20/23 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, WC2
Farrer & Co occupied five floors comprising 21,000 sq ft of this eight-storey building under seven separate leases, all of which were subject to an upwards only rent review at the same time. The reviews followed a period of sustained growth in the central London office market.
Daniel Watney lease advisory was instructed by Farrer & Co to negotiate the reviews on their behalf with a view to minimising the uplift in the passing rents.
Our Role
We carried out a detailed inspection and measurement of the premises and considered all aspects that may impact on rental value including the Mechanical and Electrical systems;
Provided a detailed report to the client summarising the lease terms, rent review provisions, the hypothetical scenario that is to be valued, a detailed market analysis including comparable transactions, advice on negotiating tactics and an estimated rental value and budget rent;
Following receipt of the landlord’s combined quoting rent of £1,266,063 pax we entered detailed negotiations with the landlord’s agent, which included applying to the RICS for the appointment of an Independent Expert to determine the reviews in the event we were unable to reach an agreement
Result
Despite the presence of unfavourable evidence in the building Daniel Watney were successful in negotiating substantial savings in excess of £1.28 million over the remaining five years of the lease.
This represented a saving in excess of 20% from the landlord’s initial proposals. These savings were secured as a result of Daniel Watney’s extensive knowledge of the local office market combined with our technical expertise gained through a combined 35 years’ experience dealing with lease advisory matters.
