to think this is grossly unfair and complete robbery?

[RentANDBills]

I'm looking into starting a business and will need to have premises to trade from.
I'm based in Central London so property is impossibly, eye-wateringly expensive.
I've spent a long, long time looking at listings and trying to find something suitable.
I've finally found a small industrial unit (1000 sq.ft) for a "reasonable" rent; at £27,000pa. already I'm being robbed
On top of this I would need to pay a £5,000 pa "service charge".
And then amenities and business rates on top of that.

Now, I'd finally got my head around the fact that I'd be paying out £32,000pa plus costs for a glorified shed when I discovered something referred to as "Lease Premium".

The landlord expects to receive an additional lump sum of £20,000 (plus VAT). It is non-refundable, it is not a deposit (that also has to be paid) and is a fee payable to the owner for accepting the transfer of tenancy from the “old tenant” to the “new tenant”.
In this case, for a lease that is for 3.5 years.

Bearing in mind that in commercial leases, the tenant takes over responsibility for the maintenance and care of the building - should the roof collapse, for example, that would be the tenants responsibility. So the tenant is actually paying to maintain or increase the value of the property, without actually benefiting from it (other than being allowed to use it for a set period of time).

AIBU to think that there is something very very very wrong with this?
How can this even be legal?

I must be missing something here.

(Also, I apologise for such a boring AIBU. Commercial land law, snore! But I'm aghast and needed to rant!)

Adarajames We're in a very wealthy part of London, businesses that you wouldn't think have a snowballs chance in hell of surviving seem to thrive here. Rent for shops nearby is £60/70/80 per sqft. Its insane. We wouldn't normally choose to live in such an expensive place but I work long hours and it means being very close (15 min bike ride) to work.

kathArtic I'm looking at sharing space with established art centres, and renting to build up a client base. No start up premises that are suitable, unfortunately.
Every place offering similar within a 30 minute radius is fully booked, and extortionate.

I don't know where you are looking at, but the pottery cafe model seems to work and there are quite a few in london. You could also try looking at buildings that may have under used basements and second floors. You also may well find a leisure centre or council run space is interested if they have under used space.

Sorry to be blunt, but welcome to the world of running your own business in Central London!!! You factor these costs into your business model and it's either a viable business or it isn't. This is the reason why highstreets are full of chains and online businesses are often less risky.

Strongmummy absolutely! Even adding in robbery lease premiums my spreadsheets still add up. I have an online business which does well, but of course it was easier to set up! I'm still appalled though at how it can possibly be conceived as fair to charge someone tens of thousands for the privilege of renting and maintaining a property.

Alanna1 I've been to a pottery cafe in Battersea which was lovely, but I did require a small loan to buy a mug there

I'll add council space to the list, thank you!

What about going East into a trendy but not so wealthy area? I can think of a few locations where it could have potential