Experience working w a residential agent to buy/sell Commercial?

[Mike L.]

Hi there,

I'm a commercial broker specializing in the purchase and sale of retail properties (single tenant properties and strip centers).

I have come across many investors who use their residential agent to help them buy commercial properties.  As a specialist, I wonder if the investors know that there are brokers who specialize in certain aspects of commercial real estate, or if they know, but would rather stay loyal to their agent, even if that agent doesn't understand commercial real estate very well.

Have any of you (as investors or brokers) had this experience?  Do you have any good or bad experiences in working with a residential agent to handle commercial, potentially gotten in trouble if the residential agent missed something?  

Mike