Tom Miller drove a race car as part of a professional team for many years. It was during that time that a very famous driver said, “There is no accident you are involved in that is not your fault.” It struck Tom as an odd statement, but as he become more experienced in the field, he came to see its truth. Accidents in which you are involved are partly your fault because you either didn’t see it coming or you put yourself in a position that left you vulnerable to the mistakes or poor judgement of another.
The same truth applies in commercial real estate. The broker you just hired is there to protect you from any issues that may negatively impact you or your transaction. Anything less is a failure, plain and simple. Your role is to choose your agent carefully, first by gathering recommendations and then by narrowing the field with an interview process.
Once you’ve made your decision, be clear on what you should expect – and what you should not expect – from your industrial real estate agent.
Expectations for your Industrial Real Estate Agent
To aggressively represent your interests
To offer sound, meaningful advice at every turn
To not only guide, but to streamline the transaction process
To raise awareness about potential situations
What you should not expect from your Industrial Real Estate Agent
A learning curve on your transaction
It sounds severe, but it’s your agent’s job to provide excellent solutions that are within both your budget and your timeline. It is not your responsibility to educate an agent at the expense of your deal.
Remember that a professional agent’s experience is vast, and that his advice should keep you out of scrapes that may befall others – especially if they’re navigating the process on their own. If your agent isn’t being forthcoming in his recommendations, you should wonder why. Is it inexperience in the field or in your particular kind of transaction? Is it disinterest or laziness? Whatever the case, remember that you should be partnering with an industry expert who is proficient in guiding every phase of the process, and that includes both facilitation and looking down the road. If something pops up unexpectedly, consider it a big a red flag. The odds are good that no matter what it was, the right broker with the right experience would have seen it coming and been quick to prepare for it.
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