In the life of a shopping center, tenants will come, and they will go. When tenants leave, the work begins. Some landlords prefer to lease the vacant space themselves, some employ a commercial broker to help find a tenant. I believe that hiring the right leasing agent is the best decision a shopping center owner can make. Let me explain.
First, what is the "right" leasing agent? There are a number of factors to consider when searching for a good leasing agent. Below I have listed some of the most important ingredients to look for when choosing a leasing broker. If you are a broker, these are some things to consider when you are pitching a potential new client.
1. Is the broker a specialist or a generalist? A specialist is a leasing machine. Why? This is the way they make the majority of their income. A specialist spends the majority of time getting know the leasing market, they will know how to best position your property among the competing inventory. Because leasing agents consistently work in this market they will also know the tenants that are looking in the market as well as any new tenants coming into the market. The specialist concentrates primarily on just one sector of commercial real estate, i.e. office, retail, industrial, etc. How would a broker that does a lot of office leasing keep track of all of the retail leasing that is going on in the market? The answer is, they don't.
2. A generalist will take what ever listing that presents itself and incorporate the three P marketing strategy, Put up a sign, Put on the internet, and Pray.
So if you are an owner and vacancy means lost income opportunity, which broker do you feel more comfortable with?
