Learn about retail and commercial leases

If you're planning on leasing business premises, you can get more information from the Office of the NSW Small Business Commissioner to make sure you are prepared and protected as a tenant.

There may be some things you can do to make sure you are properly prepared. These include:

• making sure you check that the lease describes the premise’s permitted use as far as the landlord is concerned, and that the permitted use enables you to run your type of business
• obtaining relevant approvals (including through a DA) from your local council in relation to your proposed use, and before making changes to the site
• getting your landlord to register your tenancy with Land and Property Information – this will give you more protection as a tenant
• making sure you know how any cash bond will be held (although it is not required, parties to commercial leases are able to lodge bonds with the NSW Government’s Retail Bond Scheme).

The Office of the NSW Small Business Commissioner's info kit has information about commercial leasing. Topics include:

• before signing a lease
• avoiding and dealing with disputes
• end of the lease and options.

To learn more about commercial leases, visit the Retail and commercial leases section on the Office of the NSW Small Business Commissioner website.