Tenant Reps focus their practice on advising professional services firms and corporations with their office space leasing and purchasing requirements. Here are a few pertinent questions to ask during the interview process:
How Many Years Have You Specialized In Representing Office Tenants?
Prior to choosing a tenant rep, ask about their experience level. This will help you are determine how knowledgeable the person is in negotiating on behalf office tenants. Experience alone will not dictate the total qualifications which a tenant representative possesses however if they are fairly new to the specialty ask who they will be partnering with to oversee the assignment.
What Specific Services Do You Offer That Are Pertinent To Office Tenants?
It is always a good idea to ask the prospective tenant rep what specific services they offer that set them apart from other commercial real estate companies. Many full service brokerage companies will offer services to get you through the commercial office leasing process from start to finish, some may not offer every single tenant representation service. As an example, is there a dedicated group to facilitate making educated decisions around operations, labor, location, logistics and real estate - aligning a company's operational plan with a forward looking real estate plan, and creating leverage for incentive negotiations. Are there specialists skilled at taking the value that's currently locked into your real estate portfolio whether leased or owned and unlocking it, thereby freeing up needed capital? Are there lease administration specialists to help you significantly reduce your costs?
Is Your Companies Practice Exclusive To Representing Office Tenants?
Ask the tenant rep if they only represent office tenants and not landlords. The tenant rep must to be on the side of the office tenant throughout the negotiating process with no conflicts of interest.
What Are The Benefits Of Working With A Tenant Rep?
Ask the tenant rep why they believe representation is warranted. This will show you how the tenant rep conducts themselves and will help ensure that hiring a tenant rep is in your best interest as an office tenant.
What Is The Process Like?
Ask the tenant rep to review the entire process with you and explain what happens from beginning to end and what part the they will play throughout the process.
How Can I Help To Make The Tenant Representation Relationship Successful?
Determine what you can do to ensure a winning relationship. Ask what material you should supply and what you can do in order to cause the best real estate transaction.
Asking these questions will give you the comfort zone that you selected the right person to negotiate on your behalf.
