Broker/Owner of Commercial Professionals in Las Vegas for over 25 years, professional speaker and author of The Successful Woman’s Mindset.
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A question that I often hear from clients in my commercial real estate business is: Do you have any off-market properties for sale?
Investors are interested in real estate that fits their exact specifications and deals that can be completed as quickly and seamlessly as possible — and off-market properties can check both of these boxes.
What Is An Off-Market Property?
An off-market commercial property is not advertised publicly for sale on the common commercial real estate listing sites. A seller may prefer to keep a sale private for reasons related to their tenants or business interests. For instance, I worked with a business owner who was selling multiple industrial properties. He wanted to keep the sale off-market because he was concerned it would negatively affect his tenants or company if it was publicly known he was selling.
My company specializes in matching buyers with their ideal off-market commercial properties; here are three of the main advantages of purchasing an off-market property in commercial real estate.
1. Fewer people are looking at off-market properties.
Because they are not easily searchable by the general public, off-market commercial properties are usually found through real estate agents or word of mouth. Only a few agents and investors know that each property is available, and this exclusivity makes the search more focused and less stressful for buyers. When I bring off-market properties to my clients, they like not having to contend with an extensive pool of other interested buyers. At the same time, I am bringing a seller an investor who is qualified and specifically looking for a property like the one for sale.
2. You’re only looking at properties that meet your specific investment criteria.
When you work with a commercial real estate agent, you outline the precise requirements of the property you want to buy, and they propose a short list of off-market properties that match your criteria. If you’re only interested in multifamily properties with over 200 units in Las Vegas, you can communicate those specifications to your agent and not waste any time looking at properties that don’t meet your investment needs.
Before I start investigating off-market commercial properties for my investors, I always get a clear idea of their parameters. The more detailed their descriptions, the more likely I am to find a property that will satisfy their investing criteria. I’m working with an investor right now who is looking solely for land to build self-storage in Las Vegas. With this information, I can narrow my search considerably and show him only properties that have a high probability of meeting his investment needs.
3. You benefit from already established relationships.
When you find a commercial property for sale on the market, you typically don’t know anything about the seller in advance. The advantage of an off-market property is that your commercial agent usually has an existing relationship with the seller, which helps clarify everyone’s expectations and move a deal forward more easily.
In my business, I often play a connector role between sellers and investors. I learn an owner wants to sell their property, and they share the details with me and indicate they want to keep it off the market. Because I already have a list of investors and their specific criteria, I can say, “This property would be perfect for what Investor X is looking for,” and put the puzzle pieces together. Both the seller and the buyer are pre-vetted and ready to negotiate a fair deal, making the negotiations and sale more efficient.
If you are interested in investing in commercial real estate, off-market properties offer a wealth of advantages. You can often save yourself time, money and inconvenience by sidestepping publicly advertised properties and working with an agent who specializes in off-market properties.
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