Business Lease, threatened with Section 21 Notice to Vacate?

[SunbeamFan]

Hi All,

I rent a small Business Unit (converted Barn on a Farm), I signed a 5 year year Lease mid 2020, there are no provisions for a break during the term and the rent is stated monthly with no provisions to change the rent during the Contractual Term.

I've received a text message from the Landlord saying he wants to double my rent or he's going to serve a Section 21 Notice to vacate (which I believe only applies to AST Residential Leases) and further cited his grounds as the Landlords intention to reoccupy and renovate which I believe applies under the Landlord and Tenants Act 1954 which applies to Business Leases (which mine is), so he appears to be mixing up legislation.

I see no automatic right for the Landlord to change the rent or evict me until the Contractual Term has ended, I have always paid rent and service charges on time, your thoughts please?

Many thanks.

[atticus]

Is your lease contracted out of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954?

If you are paying rent and complying with all terms of the lease, your landlord cannot do this. He appears to know what he is talking about.

If you will be wanting to renew your tenancy in 2025, I suggest that you consult a solicitor in Autumn 2024 to consider what action you may wish to take under Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954.

[SunbeamFan]

Is your lease contracted out of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954?

If you are paying rent and complying with all terms of the lease, your landlord cannot do this. He appears to know what he is talking about.

If you will be wanting to renew your tenancy in 2025, I suggest that you consult a solicitor in Autumn 2024 to consider what action you may wish to take under Part II of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954.

Hi,

Thank you for the response.

My lease excludes sections 24-28 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1954 which, if I understand correctly, covers my rights to extend the lease on expiry of the Contract Term, this is not an issue as I am building my own Unit at my house and this will be finished before the Contract Term expires, but building it myself and juggling work, it will take some time to complete.

I am paying all rent and service charges in full and on time, as far as I am aware, I am fully compliant with the terms of my lease including my obligations for maintenance.

I just want to be fairly confident that the Landlord cannot double my rent and threaten eviction as a consequence if I do not agree, before I reply to them. Sounds like extortion to me!

[atticus]

Subject to the terms of your lease, you may have that confidence.

[efpom]

Your statement;

“I've received a text message from the Landlord saying he wants to double my rent or he's going to serve a Section 21 Notice to vacate (which I believe only applies to AST Residential Leases)”

is intriguing!

Your understanding is correct - Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 has no application to commercial leases.

More importantly, under your commercial lease, there will probably be a term that notices under the lease are to be in writing and served at a particular physical address, in which case, a text message to your mobile phone would not comply with the formalities.
Rather than engaging with your commercial landlord, I think your interests would be better served by simply not responding to that text message, or any further messages.

Are you an individual, e.g. a sole trader, or a company?

[SunbeamFan]

Your statement;

“I've received a text message from the Landlord saying he wants to double my rent or he's going to serve a Section 21 Notice to vacate (which I believe only applies to AST Residential Leases)”

is intriguing!

Your understanding is correct - Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988 has no application to commercial leases.

More importantly, under your commercial lease, there will probably be a term that notices under the lease are to be in writing and served at a particular physical address, in which case, a text message to your mobile phone would not comply with the formalities.
Rather than engaging with your commercial landlord, I think your interests would be better served by simply not responding to that text message, or any further messages.

Are you an individual, e.g. a sole trader, or a company?

Hi,

Thank you for the reply. I occupy just as an individual.

To be honest, the more I think about it the more it sounds like extortion! Double your payment or else .............

You're correct there is a clause requiring notices to be in writing to a specified address, to be fair though, he wasn't actually serving notice, only threatening to unless I lined his pockets.

I've simply replied saying he can't take either action until my Contractual Term expires, that was just over a week ago and no reply since.

Many thanks.