Buying Commercial Real Estate

Buying Commercial Real Estate

A real estate professional can be the most help to you in finding commercial real estate when you are specific in articulating exactly what you are looking for.

Buyers of commercial real estate fall into one of two categories.  Investors and end users.  (Speculators are a subset of Investors)  Investors primarily look at the purchase as a financial transaction.  They are concerned about cash flow, appreciation  and return on their investment.  An end user primarily is going to use the real estate to facilitate the operation of the business.  Purchasing a commercial property is a capital expenditure to the end user.

There are many attributes that must be defined so that the real estate professional can find just the right property that meets your needs.   Some attributes are obvious and common to all types of real estate such as location, parcel & building size, zoning, visibility and access.  Others are not as obvious like building functionality, access to highways, schools, competitors, other company stores, demographics, service market, traffic count, corner property, traffic light, workforce, taxes and political climate (business friendly municipalities).

The more specific you can pinpoint your attributes, the better your real estate professional can help you.  For example, location – “Somewhere in Pennsylvania” is too broad to be useful.  “Anywhere in Berks County PA” is much more specific.  “On a main street in Exeter Township, Berks County PA” is even better.

Different industries, business models and individual preferences will determine the emphasis of one attribute over another.  I always find that sitting down with a client to understand their business helps to find the right site.  If a client has multiple sites, the first question I ask is “Tell me the attributes and characteristics of your most successful locations“

Please click here to contact me or use the form below for a personal consultation to evaluate your unique commercial real estate needs.