February 11, 2021 12:32 PMLONDON (NYTIMES) - For years, landlords have had the upper hand in London's real estate market, pushing up rents as businesses clamoured for prime locations near offices, tourism hot spots and transport hubs and as the city's population grew and grew. Restaurants were often locked into leases with clauses that allowed the rent to only go up. Retailers faced increasingly exorbitant rents.