Working With Commercial Brokers
by Charlie Brenner

So you've got a good commercial prospect! Are you going to work it, or refer it out to a commercial associate? When you have spent many hours and days showing that "out-of- town buyer" homes and hopefully having a successful closing, you develop a close relationship. When the buyer is asking you for advice on starting their new business and needing a location to lease or purchase what do you do?

A) Spend many hours, days, or even weeks trying to find locations?

B) Refer it out to a commercial broker and ask for a referral fee?

If you answered "B," you were right.

In this day of specialization, it is most difficult to know everything that is going on in all aspects of commercial real estate. Many seasoned residential professionals know they do not have the time or the knowledge necessary to bring many of the different elements together, as they do in residential sales.

To start with, let us look at the personality profile of a good residential salesperson. The number one trait is they are "good people persons." very socially correct, if you please. Not to say good commercial brokers are not socially oriented: however, their focus is more analytical as a mainstay of their personality. Why is this important? Because buyers and sellers of most commercial properties are also very analytical -- they do the numbers front and back. They expect that if you are presenting a package to them, you surely know the numbers, as well as zoning, financing, environmental pitfalls, and, most important, negotiating a deal you know is good.

The Central Florida Commercial Real Estate Society (CFCRES) is a separate entity of commercial associates and brokers that operates under the umbrella of the Greater Orlando Association of Realtors.

However, the recommended action for the residential professional is still to refer to the latest membership directory from CFCRES and look up an associate who may be specializing in the product or location the prospect my have an interest in. It is so nice to have a satisfied customer come back and tell you how they got exactly what they wanted through your referral... and you get a nice referral check to boot!

- Charlie Brenner
  C. Brenner, Inc.