Commercial rent pressure
Commercial rent burden calculator
Estimate rent as a share of monthly revenue and see why high rent burden can make a commercial lease fragile before you sign.
Quick rent burden screen
Example only. Use the full check for the wider survival model.
Annual rent
£60,000
Monthly rent
£5,000
Monthly revenue
£24,960
Rent burden
20%
A 20% rent burden is high pressure in this rough screen. The full check should test break-even customers, upfront cash, downside revenue, and six-month survival before signing.
Formula
What commercial rent burden means
Commercial rent burden shows how much estimated revenue is absorbed by rent before staff, rates, utilities, insurance, stock, tax, and quieter trading periods are considered.
Rent burden = monthly rent ÷ monthly revenue × 100
If annual rent is £60,000, monthly rent is £5,000. If estimated monthly revenue is £24,960, rent burden is about 20%. That means rent absorbs roughly one fifth of expected revenue before the rest of the cost base is covered.
Interpretation
Rough rent burden screening ranges
These bands are not rules. They are a starting point for deciding whether the site deserves deeper pressure-testing.
Under 8%
Lighter pressure
Rent may leave more room for staff, rates, utilities, stock, tax, and quieter trading. The rest of the cost base still matters.
8% to 12%
Manageable, but check costs
This can be workable for some sites, but only if margins, staffing, rates, and utilities are realistic.
12% to 18%
Stretched depending on margins
The site may need strong customer volume or healthy margins. Break-even customers and downside trading need testing.
Over 18%
High pressure
Rent is taking a large share of revenue. This needs careful testing before signing, especially if fit-out or deposits are significant.
Why it matters
High rent burden can make a good-looking site fragile.
A busy-looking unit can still struggle if fixed rent absorbs too much revenue. The danger is not just the rent level, but the pressure rent creates when trading is weaker than expected.
Staff, rates, and utilities
Rent is only one fixed cost. A site with acceptable rent burden can still fail if staff costs, business rates, utilities, insurance, or service charge are incomplete.
Break-even customers
Rent burden shows pressure as a percentage. Break-even customers translate that pressure into a daily trading target.
Fit-out and opening cash
A site can look workable month to month but still be fragile if deposits, fit-out, legal fees, stock, and setup costs use too much cash before opening.
Downside trading
The full check tests what happens if revenue is weaker than expected and whether the site can survive six difficult early months.
Full viability check
Rent burden is only the first screen.
YieldLens UK goes further by testing break-even customers, monthly cost base, upfront cash needed, cash after opening, downside revenue, monthly burn, and six-month survival.
Before you sign
Use rent burden to decide what to challenge next.
A high rent burden does not automatically mean avoid the site, and a low rent burden does not make the lease safe. It tells you which assumptions deserve closer testing.
- Can expected revenue realistically support the rent?
- How many customers per day are needed to break even?
- Are staff, rates, utilities, insurance, and stock fully included?
- How much cash is needed before opening?
- What happens if revenue is lower than expected?
- Does the site survive six weak trading months?
Next step
Pressure-test the full lease, not just the rent.
The full commercial check connects rent burden to break-even customers, opening cash, downside trading, and six-month survival.
Important disclaimer
YieldLens UK provides indicative decision-support only. It is not financial advice, legal advice, tax advice, a valuation, or a substitute for professional due diligence.