Commercial Real Estate Agents – How to Employ a Retail Leasing Expert

In commercial and retail real estate today, it is always difficult to find a true retail leasing expert. Retail leasing is significantly different to office leasing and industrial leasing.

Leasing experts in retail property need to be well qualified in understanding tenant requirements, rental strategies, and leasing opportunities. Every shopping centre landlord that we serve will have a different set of requirements when it comes to leasing and property performance.

Knowledge and Planning

The retail leasing expert has to bring significant knowledge to the role and the clients that they serve. Retail property and shopping centres have their own cycle of tenant growth, tenant mix strategy, and rental activity.

For the shopping centre to be successful, the balance between the shopper, tenant, the landlord, and the property has to be well proportioned and planned. Each of these four elements needs to be integrated into the requirements of the other three.

Question the Candidate

In running your commercial or retail property agency, the search for a retail leasing expert to join your team should involve a number of investigations and questions. Here are some ideas to help the process.

  1. The candidate should show significant experience with retail property in other locations. That experience should include both standalone retail, and shopping centres. In saying that, it should also be recognized that there are different levels of experience in shopping centre activity and size. The candidate should be considered based on the level of experience and exposure to the right types of shopping centres in your local area.
  2. Ask questions regard rental strategies that can apply in various leasing situations. Have the person explain to you the differences between gross and net rental as they can apply with different types of retail tenants.
  3. Most retail leasing situations will involve complex lease negotiations and some form of lease incentive. Ask questions regard the different types of incentives that are available in retail shop leasing and how the candidate has used each of them in the past.
  4. Leasing a retail shop in a shopping centre is something that has to be balanced into the tenancy mix and the particular property. Ask the candidate to provide information on how they would look at the tenancy mix and the overall shopping centre so that they can select the right type of specialist tenant to fill the vacancy.
  5. When it comes to leasing a Retail Property, franchise groups are a significant part of the tenant mix and the tenancy structure. Ask the job candidate provide you with strategies of contact when it comes to the existing franchise groups that may be interested in leasing any shop and a shopping centre.
  6. You cannot be a good leasing expert without a comprehensive knowledge of the mechanism that relates to retail lease structure and lease interpretation. Put a lease document in front of the candidate for the job, and ask them to tell you and show you how they would interpret the document.
  7. When it comes to finding tenants for any vacant tenancy today, the retail leasing expert will need to have strong and stable relationships with the small business retail community. Ask questions and seek proof to ensure that the retail relationships exist. The leasing expert should have a significant database of established retail contacts and franchise groups.

When you ask the right questions at the time of the job interview, you will find and identify the strengths and weaknesses that apply to each person seeking the role. Make no mistake; retail leasing is quite a specialist process that requires the right person with the right experience. Don’t waste your time employing the wrong person. Make the right choice.

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