If you’re planning to put your commercial structure or property up in the market, you need to have a commercial real estate broker to represent you. There are many debates and discussions about how to choose the right commercial real estate broker for you needs, but there seems to still be no clear cut and fool proof way of finding the right commercial real estate broker. Hopefully, the tips and considerations mentioned below will help you in your search for the one.

Company Type

If the company you chose works primarily in residential real estate, then you may start seeing some problems soon. Residential real estate is far different from commercial real estate. In the case of the latter, the clients who will be buying your property or leasing it are not concerned about kitchens for the wife and garages for the husband. Instead they are more concerned about the population and possible market, the location and its accessibility to customers and so on. Thus, be sure that you work only with brokerage firms that focus on commercial real estate.

Previous Experience

You should also ask about how successfully they’ve worked on projects like yours in the past. It would be helpful if they could show you some testimonials from previous clients. Aside from the length of time they have been in service, you can also ask them about what special accommodations they can do for your specific requirements, which would be a big plus on the scorecard.

Marketing Materials

When possible, ask your commercial real estate broker what kinds of marketing materials they usually use for projects such as this. Go over their brochures and portfolio, and try to attend presentations if possible to see the processes behind their marketing strategy and see for yourself if this is effective.

Engagement Period

The engagement period basically locks you in with the commercial real estate broker. The engagement period, which can be anywhere from six months or more, is the time for the commercial real estate broker to find the right buyer or lessee for your property. The engagement period should be long enough for the broker to find clients, but short enough so you can start looking for a better broker.