Taking over or signing a shop lease in Queensland

The lease is assigned to you. You step into the outgoing tenant's shoes for the rest of the term, on the same rent, clauses and options. The landlord has to consent, and in Queensland that consent process under the Retail Shop Leases Act 1994 involves disclosure statements, a financial advice report from your accountant and a Form 12 legal advice report signed by a lawyer.

If the premises are a retail shop under the Act, the landlord will usually want the Form 12 before it consents. More importantly, it's the one point in the deal where someone independent goes through the lease with you. We prepare the Form 12 together with a full lease review for a fixed $880 including GST, usually within 1 to 2 business days.

This is the one that catches people most. Many leases require the tenant to refit or redecorate the shop at set times, or when the landlord asks. If you buy a business two years into a lease that requires a refit at year three, that cost is yours. It can run to tens of thousands of dollars. We check whether the clause exists, when it bites, whether it was properly disclosed, and factor it into what you should pay for the business.

It lets the landlord end the lease, or move you, if the centre or building is redeveloped. The Act puts limits on how these clauses work and when compensation may be payable, but a business with five years left on paper may have much less in practice. We tell you whether the clause is there and what you would realistically be entitled to.

Usually yes, the option comes with the lease. But an option only counts if it is exercised properly: in writing, within the window the lease sets, and often only if you haven't been in breach. Miss the window by a day and it can be lost. We diary the dates for you and explain exactly how to exercise it.

Possibly. Unpaid rent, outstanding outgoings or unauthorised fit-out can become a dispute between you and the landlord. We ask for the arrears position and the landlord's consent documents to confirm there is nothing outstanding before you settle.

Most landlords ask for one, plus a bank guarantee or bond. The amount and scope can often be negotiated before consent is given. It is worth knowing exactly what you are personally signing up for before you commit.

The landlord must give you a disclosure statement (Form 7) and a copy of the proposed lease before you sign, generally at least 7 days beforehand. It sets out rent, outgoings, fit-out obligations, redevelopment plans and more. If it is late, wrong or missing, you may have rights later, so keep it.

Some leases, particularly in shopping centres, charge base rent plus a percentage of your sales above a threshold. It means you report turnover to the landlord and pay more in good years. We explain how the threshold is set, what counts as turnover (online sales, gift cards, GST) and what reporting you are committing to.

Outgoings can include council rates, water, insurance, cleaning, air-conditioning, security, management fees and marketing levies. The disclosure statement should estimate them. We check what is actually recoverable, how it is apportioned between tenants and what rights you have to see the landlord's accounts.

Common mechanisms are CPI, a fixed percentage each year, or a market review. Some leases stack them. We model what the rent could look like over the full term, including option periods, so you can decide whether the business still works.

Make-good clauses can require you to strip out your fit-out and return the premises to a bare shell. Combined with a redecoration clause, this is often the largest hidden cost in a lease. We tell you what you are signing up for now, not when you leave.