7 Tips for Finding the Top Commercial Real Estate Broker
The commercial real estate market is worth over $1 trillion. Even in the age of telecommuting and remote work, many businesses need a storefront or an office.
Are you currently looking for a new property for your business? It’s integral that you choose the top commercial real estate broker.
The process of buying or leasing commercial real estate is time-consuming, and swimming in the commercial real estate waters all alone is risky. You could also be spending more than what you need or choosing the wrong property.
However, no two commercial real estate brokers are the same. Here are 7 tips when choosing the top commercial real estate broker.
1. Choose a Broker With the Most Experience
Commercial real estate is a very specific market. That’s why it’s always the best idea to choose a broker with the most experience. However, make sure the majority, if not all, of their experience, is in commercial real estate.
Many commercial real estate brokers specialize in both commercial and residential real estate, or they started in residential real estate and moved to commercial real estate.
Commercial real estate is more complex than residential real estate. Brokers need to take profits and losses, sales figures, office size, max capacity, and several other factors into consideration.
The last thing your business needs is to settle for a property that’s too small or a property you can’t afford. The best way to avoid these errors is by choosing the most experienced commercial real estate broker.
However, this also holds true with residential properties as well. You need someone to help you find the best property. You could use Finlay Brewer to improve your brook estate agents as they have a lot of experience in this area.
2. Provide an In-Depth Guideline About Your Business and Your Commercial Property Needs
This tip is in line with the previous one. Another way to ensure you don’t make any errors when choosing a commercial property is by providing a broker with a comprehensive guide about your business and your needs.
First, highlight essential information about your business. This includes your operating income, quarterly financial statements, previous profits and loss statements, your debt service coverage, your office size, and staff capacity (including any space for equipment).
From here, identify your needs. For example, a commerce brick-and-mortar store will have different property requirements than a tech company. Make sure you highlight different factors such as your niche and your desired location.
It’s also a good idea to highlight your goals. Let’s say you own a commerce store and want more local foot traffic. Your broker can find a property that can attract a decent amount of foot traffic while still working within your budget.
3. Find a Broker With Experience in Your Niche
Going more in-depth about that last point: your broker should have experience and a portfolio of results when working with clients in your niche.
Let’s take the commerce store as another example. A broker with retail property experience knows the market that attracts shoppers and how factors such as location and property size can drive the most amount of customers.
A broker with retail property experience likely has connections and knowledge of downtown areas or shopping districts with the open property.
4. Get to Know Their Staff
Your broker isn’t the only professional working to find your business a new home.
Your broker likely has a whole staff of realtors and other professionals that’ll handle your business. Ensure the staff is not only professional but also knowledgeable in the commercial real estate industry.
The broker’s staff should also make the buying process smooth and protect your sensitive information.
You’ll also want to know the network your broker is affiliated with. For example, what connections do they have in the commercial real estate industry? How can those connections further help you find the property you need?
5. Do They Keep up With Industry Changes?
Commercial real estate is like residential real estate in the way that there are always changes.
For example, one district can be affordable one year and the rental prices will spike the next.
A core aspect of a commercial real estate broker’s job is to keep up with industry and local commercial real estate changes, and how they can affect your business and your property.
This is not only important when buying a commercial property, but also important when selling your property.
Like residential real estate, there are certain commercial buying and selling trends that affect how long your commercial is on the market and how much you sell it for.
6. Ask for the Tools They Will Use
An effective way to prove your commercial real estate broker’s knowledge is by asking for the tools they use.
This can be a variety of factors such as their connections, any market statistics, and data, and this can even include transaction and data storage tools to ensure your financial and business information is secure.
Other useful tools can be an office space calculator that measures your staff size to the amount of equipment and materials you’ll need, as well as the property type and location information.
Ask for a list of their tools. If applicable, conduct your own research on these tools to prove they’re effective.
7. See If They Can Find Deals
While this isn’t a requirement, it’s certainly helpful. A perk of a commercial real estate broker’s market knowledge is having the potential to find the best property for the best price.
A real estate broker can use tactics such as property shopping at an off-market time or even negotiate at a lower price.
However, don’t promise yourself that a broker can provide this. Not every commercial real estate broker is successful in finding the best deals on property. Learn more here.
You’re on Your Way to Finding the Top Commercial Real Estate Broker
Before shopping for commercial property, find the top commercial real estate broker who will help ease the property buying or renting process. Use these tips to ensure you find the best broker!
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