Let’s face it…you have a lot of choices available when it comes to working with a commercial real estate broker. So how do you know when you’re working with the one broker who’s really the best one for you?
Unfortunately, brokers don’t oftentimes do much to stand out from their competition, and you can sometimes end up working with the first broker who really gets your attention. But how do you know if you’re really working with the one broker who’s best for you?
Here are some guidelines:
Does the Broker Seem to Be Knowledgeable?
When you begin working with a commercial real estate broker on a transaction, the transaction will usually involve signing an agreement worth hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars in value. With this being said, this will be an important decision for you involving a significant amount of money. Since so much will be at stake for you, you’ll want to make sure that your broker understands all of the important trends that are affecting today’s market value, and understands where the market is headed. So make sure when you’re talking with your broker that you feel they have a firm sense of this, because your final decision to move forward on the transaction will be resting on their knowledge.
Do You Feel That You Can Trust Your Broker?
As was just mentioned, you’ll be in the process of making a very important financial decision. With this in mind, you’ll want to make sure that your broker is someone you can trust. Do you get a good feeling when working with and talking with your broker? Successful businesspeople often have a greatly developed sense of intuition, so what is your intuition telling you about this broker? If there’s something that’s not feeling 100% right, it may be time for you to move on. But if your intuition has always served you well in the past, and you’re feeling good about this broker, you may have already found the right one.
Does the Broker Know What’s Contained Within the Form They Want You to Sign?
In today’s commercial real estate transactions, utilizing standardized forms for preparing offers, leases, and sale agreements is quite common. With this in mind, if your broker truly has your best interests in mind, shouldn’t they be an expert at knowing what’s contained within these forms that they want you to sign? Make statements to the broker like, “Show me in the form where it tells me how long my contingency period will be”, and “Where does it mention in the form who is responsible for maintaining the heating and air conditioning system?” Then if the broker is scrambling around and seems unsure about where to find this information in the form, do you really think that they’re the best broker for you?
Do You Feel That the Broker is Always Serving Your Best Interests?
Commercial real estate brokerage can be an interesting profession. While we work to find the transactions that our clients really want, we get paid our commission only when the transaction closes. So you’ll want to make sure that you’re working with someone who is patient at finding the right transaction that best serves your own interests, no matter how long it takes them to do so.
It’s extremely important to make sure you’re working with the right commercial real estate broker. Keeping this in mind, you’ll want to make sure you’re always working with someone who is knowledgeable, someone who gives you a good feeling about working with them, and someone who you believe represents your highest and best interests at all times
