Trusted Advice

Investors & Developers

An ongoing partnership

No two property portfolios are the same, so no two of our strategies are either.

When did you last check your rateable value was accurate? Already working with some of the largest developers, property companies and funds in the UK, we’ll partner with you to devise a bespoke approach to empty rates relief and minimise your exposure.

We can also explain your business rates bill to equip you with all the knowledge you need moving forward.

Overview of Our Services

New developments

We can ensure you don’t pay empty rates any earlier than you need to, often deferring commencement well beyond practical completion.

Reaching practical completion shouldn’t automatically trigger an empty rates liability on a vacant speculative development. Instead, the Local Authority should be guided through the individual circumstances to ensure each case is taken on its own merit.

Our experts will help review your business rates bill with local authorities, ensuring it reflects any reliefs and exemptions you are entitled to.

Empty Rates Liability Exemptions

We have a proven track record in applying for and securing reliefs and exemptions for empty properties with local councils on behalf of ratepayers.

Not all unoccupied commercial property should be subject to empty rates. In fact, exemptions are wide-reaching and specific to each individual circumstance.

Harnessing our decades of experience, our team can successfully apply specialist exemptions to empty rates liability. We deal directly with the Local Authority on your behalf to help you avoid business rates on your empty property.

Redevelopment and Refurbishment projects

If you’re planning or undertaking work on a property, we can help remove your liability from the earliest possible date.

At what point is a business’s property development or refurbishment project significant enough to compel the Valuation Office to take action and delete the assessment from the rating list?

Together, we’ll ensure the work you’re doing is enough to secure the deletion and removal of the liability for your site. On top of this, we can advise on what additional works or sequencing of works will likely secure a deletion, as well as provide budgetary advice around the level of savings.

Temporary Occupation / Rates Mitigation

We work with prospective occupiers to temporarily fill your space and maximise savings.

When we’re unable to completely remove an empty rates liability, our method of last resort is a temporary occupation rates mitigation scheme.

Working with a number of established businesses with real occupational needs, we’ll provide a quick quote detailing the gross and net savings before managing the temporary occupancy agreement process for seamless delivery.

Budgeting & Forecasting

Detailed budgetary advice to assist with acquisitions and development appraisals.

Empty Rates are an important consideration for all commercial property owners, even when there’s no immediate vacancy.

If you’re looking to acquire commercial property or move to different premises, we’ll provide detailed advice on any existing or future empty rates liabilities – and how best to mitigate them.

Rateable Value Appeals

Whether occupied or vacant, reducing the rates payable across your property portfolio can help drive up the value of your assets.

For occupied property, it’s important to consider whether the tenant is paying more than they should and how reducing their assessment might help tenants with occupational property costs. One might also raise cases of multiple occupancy or other circumstances to appeal. Meanwhile, for vacant property, an inflated rateable value can impact letting prospects.

Our experts can provide advice across your portfolio, so you can decide where to challenge your rateable value.

Demolition Strategy

Let us handle the administrative process to ensure you stop paying empty rates as soon as possible.

Full demolition will, of course, result in the deletion of the rating list entry, although a formal proposal still needs to be submitted to the Valuation Office. Our advice is tailored to ensuring this happens as early as possible.

Meanwhile, if planning is preventing full demolition from commencing, we can advise on early strip-out works, which will ensure the property is deleted from the list.

Rate Management & Compliance

Outsource your rate payment and management process to our experts and eliminate the risk of non-compliance.

A trusted partner, we offer a fully tailored service. This ranges from checking the accuracy of your rates bills to authorising direct debits, paying rates bills on your behalf, and even taking control of the entire process.

With the onus now on ratepayers to submit annual compliance returns and to notify the Valuation Office Agency of any changes to properties, we can ensure all bases are covered – while offering additional forecasting and budgetary insights.

No matter how many properties you have, you can eliminate the risk of non-compliance by letting us take responsibility.