Hello and welcome to the first edition of Fisher German's Commercial Sector Newsletter. We aim to keep you right up to date with the Commercial property market, changes in legislation, case studies showcasing our services and details of exciting investment properties currently available on the market.

We'd also like to take this opportunity to introduce you to the members of the Commercial Sector at Fisher German. In each newsletter there will also be a Q&A with a member of the team, providing a further insight in to their role and how Fisher German operates.

Finally, we'd like to take this opportunity, on behalf of everyone at Fisher German, to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year! We hope you enjoy the festive period and hope that you find the content of this newsletter interesting and useful.

We're excited to take this new step forward in communicating with you.

The Commercial Team

View the Commercial team here

Our Commercial teams are strategically situated to cover the country and are based in the offices shown below. Click on an email link to contact any of us.

Retford

Kevin Benson - Commercial Sector Head - General Practice and Development email
Rob Haigh - Chartered Surveyor - General Practice email
Ben Flint - Graduate Surveyor - General Practice email
Laura Street - Agency Assistant email
Kelly Drabble - Agency Assistant email

Market Harborough

Chris Hicks - Chartered Surveyor - Specialist in Telecom sites email
Jason Hercock - Surveyor - General Practice email
Aaron Terrington - Graduate Surveyor - General Practice email
Bronya Leeds - Secretary email
Eve Angell - Chartered Surveyor - Specialist in Telecom sites email

Knutsford

Simon Geary - Chartered Surveyor - General Practice email
Helen Thomas - Agency Assistant email

Chester

William Lewis - Chartered Surveyor - General Practice email
Kathryn Kelly - Secretary email

Stafford

John Royle - Chartered Surveyor - General Practice email

Banbury

Simon Patrick - Chartered Surveyor - General Practice email

At Fisher German we are often asked to provide advice on rateable values and business rates. We can act on behalf of the Landlord, Tenant or Owner Occupier in assessing the likely opportunity of achieving a discount or reduction in Rateable Values and are experts in submitting appeals on behalf of clients.

We boast an enviable record when it comes to appeals, having saved our clients a staggering &432,000 in their Business Rates in the last three years.

Below, we provide a background to business rates and some useful tips to help business owners.

What are Business Rates?

Business rates is the commonly used name of non-domestic rates, a tax on the occupation of commercial property. Commercial property not only includes factories, warehouses, offices and shops, but also bed and breakfast accommodation, riding stables, boarding kennels and so on. In essence any property that is used for a business purpose may incur a business rates charge.

How are Business Rates Calculated?

Firstly, each property has a rateable value set by the Valuation Office Agency. This rateable value is an estimate of the annual rent that would be paid for that property at a set date.

Secondly, the actual business rates that you pay to the local council are calculated by multiplying the rateable value with the annual business rates multiplier.

Are there any Exemptions or Reliefs available?

There are a number of reliefs, including, small business rates relief, charitable relief, rural relief and empty property relief that can reduce the business rates you pay.

One of the most common reliefs is the small business rates relief where you will receive 100% exemption (until 31 March 2016) for properties with a rateable value of &6,000 or less. This relief will gradually decrease from 100% to 0% for properties with a rateable value between &6,001 and &12,000.

Charities and amateur community sports clubs can apply for relief of up to 80% if a property is used for charitable purposes. In addition they may also be eligible for additional ‘discretionary relief’ (up to 100%).

If your property is vacant then you may be eligible for empty property rates relief for a minimum of 3 months, with industrial buildings being entitled to 6 months rates exemption.

Some local councils will give you up to &1,000 reduction on your business rates if you occupy a shop, café or restaurant that has a rateable value of less than &50,000.

When is the next Revaluation for Business Rates?

Your business rates are currently based on the 2010 rating list and historically the new lists are produced every 5 years. However the 2015 rating list was delayed and the next review is from 1 April 2017.

What happens now?

Click here to find out more about our commercial property services.

Fisher German have recently struck a potentially lucrative agreement with Fair Utilities, an Ofgem regulated company that provide zero commission gas and electric energy rates to commercial property occupiers.

Statistics suggest that a staggering 60% of Commercial tenants are on out of contract rates or variable rates with no contract to keep energy rates fixed at the lowest available energy rate and are therefore paying too much for their utility bills.

Fair Utilities offer a free service and we have a 100% satisfaction record, every tenant they have dealt with has picked rates from any energy provider of their choosing and have made a saving with Fair Utilities.

Case Study

Rob Haigh, a Chartered Surveyor working out of the Retford office of Fisher German, can personally vouch for this.

Acting as the Property Manager for Crags Industrial Estate in Creswell, Rob administers the utility supplies to a number of industrial units. Fair Utilities took some basic details of the property in question and carried out their own research before contacting Rob to inform him that the client was currently with Eon paying the following:

              -     Standing Charge: &1.48 per day
              -     Unit Charge: &0.28 per kwh

Fair Utilities scoured the market and found the best deal for this particular property to be with Opus Energy on the following rates:

              -     Standing Charge: &0.31 per day
              -     Unit Charge: &0.13 per kwh

This represented a huge saving to the client of 80% on the standing charge and 54% on the unit charge!

How you can benefit

Fair Utilities is offering to help you with your energy costs, if you are unsure or don’t know if you are in a commercial energy contract with fixed rates, please contact Rob Haigh by calling 01777 719148 or by clicking here.

For every successful referral, Fisher German receive a commission of &100 which has no impact on the energy rates that can be achieved.

The service is free and will take two 10 minute phone calls with Fair Utilities to get everything wrapped up for you. We look forward to hearing from you in the near future.

From April 2018, subject to certain exemptions, domestic (Residential) and non-domestic (Commercial) landlords are required to ensure that their properties reach at least an EPC rating of E, or have installed improvements that could be funded by a Green Deal, ECO, government or third party subsidies, before granting a new lease or renewing or extending a lease.

Where the property does not reach an E EPC rating (ie is rated F or G), the landlord will also need to register an exemption. Properties will require a minimum energy performance certificate (EPC) rating of E by 1 April 2018 (for all new leases) and by 1 April 2020 (for all existing domestic leases) and 1 April 2023 (for all existing non domestic leases).

What are MEPS?

The Energy Act 2011 commits the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change to bring into force by 1 April 2018 regulations making it unlawful to let properties in England and Wales which do not meet a prescribed minimum energy performance standard (MEPS).

All rental properties which require an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) in accordance with the Energy Performance of Buildings Regulations 2012 will be within scope.

How and when will the market be affected?

Regulations will apply from the 1 April 2018. The main impacts for the commercial property industry are:

• Data from the national EPC register indicates that 18% of commercial property stock has EPC ratings of F or G and another 20% are rated E.
• The new minimum standards apply to all sales, lettings and re-lettings, including sub-lettings and assignments and transfers to Self-Invested Pension Plans.
• Valuations and rent reviews of properties could also be affected if their marketability is diminished.
• Implications for dilapidation liabilities at lease ends could also exist.
  

Investment Property Forum research suggests that, for most building types, the EPC banding can be improved by increasing refurbishment costs by only 2%-3%.

Do you know the EPC rating on your building? If you don’t, you should find out.

Property owners and investors can address two things to be prepared for the impending changes in regulation: 

• Utilise the time efficiently between now and 2018 to take advantage of void periods and undertake planned maintenance.
• The key is preparation - property owners will put themselves under unnecessary pressure if they don’t plan well in advance of the new regulations.

For further information or advice on how best to mitigate the effects of the new EPC legislation please email us by clicking here, or contact your local office.

Click here to find out more about our commercial property services.

The 6th Edition of the RICS Code of Measuring Practice has been around since 2007 and will continue to apply to industrial, retail, residential & mixed use under Part 3 of the RICS property measurement 1st edition, May 2015.

However, commencing the 1 January 2016, the first edition of the International Property Measurement Standards (IPMS) for office buildings will be mandatory for all RICS professionals to adhere to.

The RICS have been at the forefront of developing the Code of Measuring Practice & IPMS with a coalition of more than 60 worldwide professional organisations and in the following months, the IPMS coalition are set to address and publish new further editions for industrial, retail and residential.

The RICS property measurement updates the RICS Code of Measuring Practice, (6th Edition) and incorporates the IPMS. It comprises of three elements:

    1. Professional Statement: Office Measurements only
    2. IPMS: Office Buildings
    3. Code of Measuring Practice 6th Edition

Currently, property is measured differently around the world and can vary as much as 24% with the current standards, which leads to confusion and increases risk.

The IPMS for Office Buildings significantly changes how office space is measured, which enables a consistent and uniformed way of measuring regardless of location. The accuracy and consistency for property data is pivotal for making sound asset management or investment decisions.

The IPMS for Offices enables:

    • Better transparency of property information
    • Reduces risks and facilities easier international trade
    • Greater credibility for professionals worldwide
    • Easier property benchmarking

The IPMS for offices contains the following three classifications:

IPMS 1 - the sum of the areas of each floor level of a building measured to the outer perimeter of external construction features and reported on a floor-by-floor basis. IPMS 1 is the equivalent to Gross External Area and is used in some markets for planning purposes or the summary costing of development proposals.

IPMS 2 Office Space - the sum of the areas of each floor level of an office building measured to the Internal Dominant Face and reported on a component-by-component basis for each floor of a building. IPMS 2 is the equivalent of Gross Internal Area.

IPMS 3 Office Space - the floor area on an exclusive basis to an occupier, but excluding standard facilities and shared circulation areas, and calculated on an occupier-by-occupier or floor-by-floor basis for each building. IPMS 3 is the equivalent of Net Internal Area.


More information about what IPMS includes and excludes is shown on the RICS website under knowledge, IPMS.

For further advice on measuring standards or any commercial property matter, please contact us by clicking here, or contact your local office.

Click here to find out more about our commercial property services.