The lease term may vary from 3-months to periods as long as 15-20 years. Much depends upon the requirements of the tenant and consent of the landlord; however, longer lease periods can be negotiated in case of large spaces.

The tenant and landlord enter into a lease deed, on notarized stamp paper. The value of stamp duty varies from Rs 100 to 1.5 per cent of the total rental value of the lease period. Since, these rates differ from state to state in India you must consult the notary over the same.

Is the lease deed legally binding?

Absolutely!

Yes, such provisions can be worked out between the landlord and the tenant. In absence of any dire reasons, the same is generally extended with review in security deposit and rentals.

A landlord, in most cases, does not allow a tenant to sublet or sub-lease a part of the rented property. However, the tenant can secure permission in the matter and the same can be provisioned in the lease deed.

In India, the rent is quoted in terms of rupees per square feet. The units of per square meter and per square yard are also increasingly coming under use in many cities.

1 square meter=10.76 square feet
1 square yard=9 square feet

The rental value of a property depends upon the varied factors of its location, public infrastructure, connectivity, and other facilities.

However, on broader scale, a property owner expects rent bringing 6-15 per cent annual return on his investment.

Mostly, it’s paid within the first week of the month, in advance.

The rent includes the usage of common spaces, parking lots, common building maintenance charges, government taxes and other furniture and fittings given as per the provisions of the lease deed.

It does not include usage charges of electricity, water, telephone, broadband, cable TV or other recurring expenses incurred by you.

It is mostly the tenant who has to bear the society charges.

You can be exempted from the rental for days landlord take to bring the premises in habitable condition. You can simultaneously carry out your activities for setting up your base at the space. So, this you can treat as an incentive from the landlord.

Can my landlord impose fine on late payment of the rent?

Definitely, your landlord can charge you late payment fee as per the conditions of the agreement. In fact, the landlord also gets right of serving you with eviction notice in case you don’t pay rent on time or delay it on frequent basis.

The floor space is basically measured in terms of carpet area, built-up area and super build-up area.

Carpet Area: This area is measured internally from wall to wall. It is the actual floor area that you would use.

Built-up: It includes the external surfaces of the walls and may incorporate an allocation of common spaces, excluding lift core and fire stairs. It can be 20-25 per cent more than the carpet area.

Super Built-up: The super built-up includes proportional allocation of all common spaces like lobbies, stairs and lift cores etc. Consequently, it is about 30-35 per cent larger than the carpet area.

Which one is taken for calculating rent?

The rental value is calculated mostly on the basis of carpet area. So, if you are hiring an office space @ 25 psft, the same will be worked out as per the carpet area.

A rented premises usually comes along with reticulated or suspended ceiling, electric fixtures, power and telecommunication reticulation. In case the building is centrally air-conditioned, the ducts are suitably provided by the landlord.

Offices from medium size are given separate toilets and a pantry might also be there. The area covered by these facilities is included in the total carpet area of the space itself.

There is no hard and fast rule on how much Security Deposit (SD) a landlord can ask for. It can vary from the amount same as a month’s rent to any figure.

Almost every landlord prefers SD to cover himself against non-receipt of rent and excessive damages to the property caused by tenant while the tenant vacates the place.

SD also ensures accountability from the part of the tenant to hold and leave the premises in a suitable manner.

Besides, SD and advance rental, a tenant does not have to bear any other major costs. Although, the stamp duty charges towards lease deed are mostly borne by the landlord, tenants can be asked to share the cost.

It depends upon the eviction clause of your rent agreement. A landlord can give you notice period as per the time specified in the same. However, you can challenge the same and asks for extended time limits on valid grounds. The reason can be your inability to vacate the premises due to serious illness, injury, and other medical grounds.

Also, the eviction notice can be appealed in the court if you find that your landlord wants you to leave the premises on false grounds.

As such, there are no costs involved while vacating the place except your general expenses towards shifting of your goods from the place. You just need to cleanly drift away, handing over possession to the landlord.

Foreign based companies can lease office spaces including liaison offices and representative offices, for a maximum period of 5-years, in India. Norms for purchasing property are gradually eased off except under certain specific conditions laid by Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

Regulations are likely to soften while more and more IT parks, and Special Economic Zones (SEZs) are coming up fast across all parts of the country.

Foreign companies that have been permitted to set up liaison or representative office in India are not allowed to purchase property in the country. However, no other major restrictions are there besides the aforementioned ones.