How to Interview Your Agent and Make a Great Impression!

Whenever you talk to a prospective commercial real estate agent, they are going to be interviewing you the entire time that you are interviewing them. You can only make a good first impression once, so you want to be prepared to answer their questions as you ask yours. The more prepared you are for this phone call, the more experienced and professional you will sound. Write down your questions beforehand so that you know what you want to cover and that way if you get off track, you will know what you still need to talk about.

When you interview an agent, start by asking about their experience level, we discussed this in the last blog. Find out if they are proficient in self-storage but remember that they are also going to try to assess your experience level. They will want to know what kind of investing you have done in the past and whether or not you are experienced in commercial real estate.

The agent is also going to ask you what types of properties you are looking for specifically. You are looking for properties that have an upside potential. You are looking for properties that have a lot of vacancies due to mismanagement or poor maintenance because you can go in and fix the management problems, make the property look nice and improve the cash flow.

Another type of property that you want to look at is dumps. Let them know that you are looking for the ugly properties. You want the properties that need work. You want the properties that they are embarrassed to market. Let them know that you would like to see these properties as soon as they list them, so they do not even need to make a marketing package. Let them know that you are not going to naively purchase a property. You are going to do your due diligence and make sure that the property fits your self-storage model. Then tell them what your model is.

Any time that you are talking to a good agent, they are going to ask you about your financial capabilities. They do not want to invest 225 hours in you only to find out that you are not able to actually close on a self-storage facility. Make sure that you answer that question confidently so that they know you have the ability to close. If they do not feel that you have the ability to close on a transaction, they may not be willing to put in the time and energy that you need to find a great opportunity.

If you have cash, let them know. If you are working with a group of investors who can purchase a property with any price tag or even multiple properties as long as the numbers work, let them know. If they ask for a proof of funds letter, let them know that you would be happy to provide them with a proof of funds letter as soon as you have a property under contract. Explain that you have several different partners and lenders that you work with and until you have identified a property, you don’t know who you will be working with. However, once you find a great deal, you will be able to provide a proof of funds letter.

If you are getting a loan, tell the real estate agent who the lender is that you are planning on working with. If you do not have a lender in that area, ask for a referral. Your agent should have a team of lenders who can help you close on the deal. Either way, your real estate agent will want to follow up with your lender to verify that you have the purchasing power needed to buy whatever you are looking at.

When you are talking to an agent, ask them if they pay finders fees. Introduce this idea by asking them how they are finding their new self-storage listings. Once you know what they are doing, tell them what marketing you are doing to find potential properties. Explain that often you will find owners who want to sell, but not at your price. This is a great time for you to be able to refer those sellers to an agent. Ask them if they are willing to pay a marketing fee to you for bringing them sellers who want to list their properties.

Your Real estate agent can make a huge different between your success and your failure. Find an agent that you feel comfortable with. If for some reason that agent does not work out, then go to the next one. Do not wait weeks for them to return calls. If they appear to lose interest in you, find the next agent.

When you are working with a real estate agent, be prepared with a list of questions that will help you know if they are the right fit for you and what you want. Always be prepared for them to qualify you as a buyer at the same time you are qualifying them as a potential power team member. As always, happy investing.