Top Commercial Real Estate Agents do all the work for Free
In a previous post I went over the value of getting top commercial real estate agents (CRE agents) to help you find your ideal commercial space. Not only is it free, but letting a pro handle your search is the sole way to do everything in your power to get the right space for you. It’s what they do for living, after all.
In that post, I included 3 tips on getting the best commercial real estate agents and getting the most out of the experience. You can find that post here.
Well, without further adieu, here are tips 4 through 9:
4. Be Transparent
Commercial real estate agents need to know what your company does. If you’ll be using a warehouse to distill organic vodka, they need to know that from the get go. If your credit is sub-par, it’s probably ok – but they need to know. Make your rep aware of anything about your business that’s out of the ordinary so that they incorporate that in their decision to take you on as a client and which properties to show you. You won’t be doing yourself any favors by obscuring facts.
The facts will eventually come to light and you’ll just have spent time and energy on a bad fit, putting you that much farther behind on your space search.
5. Be Available
Commercial agents will be calling and emailing you for more information, to schedule property tours, and to give you updates. You gotta be able to be reached. Set out a time window to be on call for tours and stick to it. If every time your rep schedules a tour for you they have to go back and forth between you and the listing agent or landlord, it’s going to be a nightmare for everyone.
6. Keep It Exclusive
Good commercial real estate agents work hard for you. Don’t cheat on them by working with multiple tenant/buyer reps. When you talk to an agent you’re considering working with, feel them out in your initial conversation. If you think they are a good fit and you’d like to work with them, let them know that they are your gal or guy on this project. Give them enough time to work for you — at least 4 weeks.
The best commercial real estate agents will almost universally not work for a client that has another buyer or tenant rep. It’s too big of a risk for them. You can work with more than one commercial real estate agent as long as they know it’s an open relationship. Just know their heart will likely not be all the way in it if you’re working with multiple agents.
7. Send Them Property Listings
Commercial real estate agents realize that you may want to keep looking on your own. That’s not an issue – nearly half of prospective tenants do. When you find a property that you like, send your agent the listing info. Let them do the heavy lifting as far as calling or emailing listing agents, confirming availability, scheduling tours, etc.
This behavior indicates that you are committed to having them find you space and that their work will not be in vain. It will also save you a ton of time, so you can focus on growing your business while your tenant rep acts as your dedicated virtual assistant in finding you space.
8. Get Financials Organized
I can say without equivocation that there is no way a legitimate landlord will lease you space without looking at your financials. They’ll want to see tax returns for the business. They may also want to see your personal tax returns. They’ll likely want to see the business’s profit and loss statement, as well as bank account balances for the previous few months. They may even run your personal credit and want to see business plans for new businesses.
It can feel a bit invasive, but it’s not for the sake of some sort of perverse financial voyeurism. Having to remove tenants for non-payment is expensive and unpleasant for building owners. To avoid that, landlords do their due diligence by looking at your financials. Getting this all in order and ready to present to the listing agent and/or landlord will help your commercial real estate agent beat out other businesses competing for the same space. Speed matters. It can be the ultimate difference between getting the space you love, or not.
9. That’s it
That’s what’s good for the goose. By following these tips, you’ll have the best shot at getting the best gander. In other words, helping your commercial real estate agent to help you is the best way to get the best help from top commercial real estate agents for free.
July 11, 2017 at 9:50 am
Thank you for all this great information about commercial real estate. I’m glad you mentioned that potential business need to be able to provide their tax returns, business profit and loss statements. I can understand that people may feel that’s a bit invasive, but if it will help the business and process grow easier. If I were a business owner, I would make sure to disclose all of my financial details. http://baddourrealestate.com/
July 21, 2018 at 5:41 am
Thanks to the entire crew of Digsy for glossing some handy clues on finding a genuine real estate representative. From my slant, a negotiator is a buffer. Thus, when you are dealing with a commercial real estate affair, make sure you are appointing someone who is better than you are. But how will you know whether the agent is better or not? If the mouthpiece has sound negotiation skill, strong professional networking, potentiality to handle volumes of paperwork, and ability to maintain transparency in communication, then only you can say that the estate representative- http://www.martinlandis.com/ is better and efficient.