Whole shoplot: lifts, joining units, fire, signage, lease and deposit

Most shoplots of four storeys or fewer have no lift, and adding one or joining two or three units needs approved building plans. Fire safety and signboards go through the council and Bomba. Whole-building tenants usually commit for longer than the common 2 + 2, and deposits follow the usual months of rent, on a bigger rent.

This is general information, not legal advice. Rules differ between DBKL, MBPJ and MBSJ; confirm with the council, your architect and your lawyer.

Usually not. Most Klang Valley shoplots are two to four storeys with a staircase only. Under the Uniform Building By-Laws 1984 (by-law 124), a lift is required in non-residential buildings of more than four storeys above or below the main access level, so a typical shoplot was never required to have one.

Adding a lift is possible in many buildings, but it is structural work: a shaft through each floor, a machine room or roof structure, and changes to the layout. It needs building plans prepared by a qualified person (an architect or engineer) and approved by the council before work starts. Get the landlord's written consent and agree who owns and maintains the lift when the tenancy ends.

Yes, it is commonly done for restaurants and showrooms, but treat it as a building project, not a renovation:

• Approval. Openings in party walls are structural and need approved plans. The walls also separate one building from the next for fire safety, so your architect must design openings with Bomba's requirements in mind.
• Owners. If the units have different owners, you need each owner's written consent and a tenancy for each title. The titles stay separate.
• Reinstatement. Agree now whether the walls must be closed up again when you leave. See reinstatement at the end of a tenancy.

Two layers apply. Under the Fire Services Act 1988, premises designated by order according to their use and size need a fire certificate from Bomba, renewed every year. Whether your building is designated depends on what you run and how big it is; a hotel is more likely to be caught than a shop or restaurant. For other uses, fire safety is checked through the building plan and business licence process: escape stairs, exits, alarms, extinguishers and emergency lighting suited to the number of people on each floor.

Ask your architect to check before you sign, because a whole building used by one operator, with customers on upper floors, may need more than the previous tenants had. Our guide to KL shop permits shows where fire clearance fits.

Only with an advertising permit, and the council decides the size, lighting and position, not the tenant. Renting the whole building gives you control of the facade as far as the landlord is concerned, but the permit still applies. DBKL, MBPJ and MBSJ each run their own process; MBSJ, for example, handles advertising permits through its E-Lesen system. Read MBSJ and MBPJ licence and signboard permits, and do not order the sign until you know what will be approved.

Single shops are often let on "2 + 2", partly because a fixed term over 3 years (or with renewals taking the total past 3 years) may be treated as a lease that needs registration (LH Low & Associates). In our experience, whole-building operators spend more on fit-out and so ask for longer commitments, such as 3 + 3. That is negotiable, but involve your lawyer on registration and on the stamp duty, which rises with the term: per RM 250 of annual rent, RM 1 for up to 1 year, RM 3 for 1 to 3 years, RM 5 for 3 to 5 years and RM 7 over 5 years (SPEEDHOME). Use the stamp duty calculator. See also what 2 + 2 means.

The usual pattern is 2 to 3 months' rent as security deposit plus 1 month as utility deposit, about 3 to 4 months' rent upfront with advance rent (SPEEDHOME). For a whole building the months are similar but the rent is bigger. A simple illustration: at RM 30,000 a month, 2 to 3 months' security is RM 60,000 to RM 90,000, plus RM 30,000 utility. More in shop rental deposits.