In September this year and in conjunction with the Property Managers Association (PMA), we issued a survey to members of the PMA to canvass views on the current state of the market. For us, it felt like the right time to take stock following the difficult market conditions that have existed for a number of years. We know from our clients that there is a general feeling of change being on the horizon, particularly for certain retailers and certain locations. In addition, there have been significant changes in retailer’s habits with IT innovations and the increasing impact of social media. There also remains the continuing pressure to decrease costs and improve on margins. We therefore wanted to take this opportunity to step back and look at the property market afresh and see what the PMA members thought about various topical property issues.

1. taking stock...
the state of the market
2014 survey

2. inside cover/intro
Committed to the
Plain English Campaign

3. introduction...
Sarah Parkinson
Partner, Browne Jacobson LLP
sarah.parkinson@brownejacobson.com
+44 (0)115 976 6575
In September this year and in conjunction with the Property Managers Association (PMA), we issued a survey to members of the PMA to canvass views on the current state of the market.
For us, it felt like the right time to take stock following the difficult market conditions that have existed for a number of years. We know from our clients that there is a general feeling of change being on the horizon, particularly for certain retailers and certain locations.
In addition, there have been significant changes in retailer’s habits with IT innovations and the increasing impact of social media. There also remains the continuing pressure to decrease costs and improve on margins. We therefore wanted to take this opportunity to step back and look at the property market afresh and see what the PMA members thought about various topical property issues.
We are grateful to those who responded and the feedback we obtained from the survey.
The results of the survey are summarised in this report and we welcome any feedback you have on its contents.
Thank you

4. rentals
.........................................................................................................................................................................................
....................................................................................................................................
39%
of people thought their competitors
were buying deals in the market,
which is driving up rentals,
particularly in the food market
33% have managed to
secure an upwards/
downwards rent review
But
only
22%...
thought
they
would
secure
one
in the
future
Currently getting
monthly rents?
Which
would
you
prefer?
8%
never
22%
rarely
34%
most of
the time
36%
some of
the time
22% of people
said...
36% of people
said...
42% of people
said...
shorter lease with
no rent review
RPI rent review
72% said their position would be
the same in 12 months time
33% But in 5
years time...
42% thought they were more
likely to get monthly rents
thought they
would be in the
same position and
upwards only, open
market rent review

5. terms
.........................................................................................................................................................................................
What
length
of term
do you
prefer?
6 - 9 years
0 - 4 years
10+ years
10 years (no break)
5 years
10 years (with break)
0%
0%
3%
9%
20%
68%
............................................................................................................................
59%
would accept
payment of annual
rent as a break
condition whereas
15%
wouldn't accept
any type of break
condition
91%
of people
said no
Have you
had a break
notice
challenged
in the last
12 months?
76% flexibility was
their priority
over certainty
for lease terms
of people
said...

6. service charges
.........................................................................................................................................................................................
76% of people find landlords to be co-operative on service charge queries and providing information
..................................................................
...................................................................
27% of people cap service charges but may concede if the deal is right.
64% only cap them sometimes, depending on the property
48% of people felt the Service Charge Code of Practice has an impact
93%
have not litigated a service charge dispute recently
.........................................................................................................................................................................................
How often do you challenge an uncapped service charge?
Sometimes - 42%
Often - 36%
Rarely - 15%
Never - 6%
36+43+15+6+A

7. lease renewals
..................................................................
..........................................................................................
.....................................................................................
.....................................................................................
.....................................................................................
72%
instruct external providers to deal with lease renewals
17%
of them instruct every time
55% said they were more cautious on deadlines since the Jackson reforms came into force
10%
have used mediation in lease renewal negotiations...
only 33%
of those were successful
Time and cost were the most frustrating factors in the renewal process
66%
felt PACT was the best way to resolve a lease renewal in the absence of an agreement
Referring disputes straight to PACT and taking the process away from the courts was the most common response to the way things could be streamlined
................................................................

8. dilapidations
.........................................................................................................................................................................................
What is the one thing you would change about the law in this area?
"Penalties for overinflated claims"
"Landlords to prepare realistic claims in the first place"
72%
have had an increase in dilapidations disputes in the last 2 years
thought the Dilapidations Protocol had no impact
said paying the landlord was the company strategy on dilapidations, rather than doing works. 69% thought it would cost less to do this
38%
69%

9. the market
The main issues for businesses in this market are:
occupation costs
................................................................................................................................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................................
..............................................................................................................................
In 5 years time what do you think the single biggest issue will be for you in the market?
Increasing rents came out on top
If you had a magic wand, what would you change in the marketplace?
The majority said upwards/downwards rent reviews
One respondent wanted to ban supermarkets from town centres!
Property costs are usually the second biggest cost for retailers after wages. What do you think can be done to drive this cost down?
Business rates
came top again after highlighting the need for reform
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
£
service charges
rates
insurance
dilapidations
increasing rents
excess space
global competitors

10. about us...
Browne Jacobson is a national firm with a track record of delivering solutions to our national and international client base. We have experience across a wide variety of sectors and a client portfolio to be proud of - including blue chip corporates, major insurers and public sector organisations. We have a national reach from our offices in Birmingham, Exeter, London, Manchester and Nottingham and as the founding member of PANGEA NET, a non exclusive network of full service law firms, we are well placed to provide quality legal services to our clients with international needs.
Our 50-strong dedicated property team have extensive experience of acting for retailers and can provide innovative solutions on the full spectrum of property related issues including planning, construction, tax, property litigation and environmental matters. We advise many of the retailers with stores in shopping centres and high streets across England as well as landlords with large property portfolios, and several of our lawyers have either worked in-house with retailers or participated in secondment programmes with our clients.
We are committed to delivering excellent client service as reflected by our three star exceptional rating Investors in Customers accreditation and recent award for Excellence in Client Service at the 2014 Law Society Excellence Awards. We have a true partnership approach with our clients - our top 20 clients have remained with us for an average of 13 years each.
We have over 700 staff, including 400 lawyers and over 100 partners, and a high level of employee retention – recognised as one of the top 10 law firms to train with in the UK by LEX. We are also Lexcel and ISO27001:2005 accredited, demonstrating our commitment to the highest management, customer care and information security standards.
talk to us...
Sarah Parkinson | sarah.parkinson@brownejacobson.com | +44 (0)115 976 6575
Kirsty Black | kirsty.black@brownejacobson.com | +44 (0)161 300 8043
Pam Shepherd | pamela.shepherd@brownejacobson.com | +44 (0)121 237 3937
Tim Rayner | tim.rayner@brownejacobson.com | +44 (0)121 237 3949

11. © Browne Jacobson LLP 2014 - The information contained within this report is and shall remain the property of
Browne Jacobson and the PMA. This document may not be reproduced without the prior consent of Browne Jacobson.
This state of the market report has been produced by Browne Jacobson in conjunction with the Property Managers Association (PMA). The survey, in electronic form, was sent to all PMA members on 15th September 2014 and closed to respondents on 26th September 2014. No responses were permitted after this date. The results of the survey, which are summarised in this report, have been compiled from the responses received. Any opinions expressed within the report are those of the 36 respondents and are not necessarily those of Browne Jacobson LLP and should not in any way be relied on as a conclusive survey of the retail market. We hope you found the report interesting but please feel free to contact us if you have any queries.

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