FAQ's

The old maxim for real estate is “Location – Location - Location”. In commercial real estate it should be “Price – Price – Price”. It to doesn’t matter where a commercial property is located if the price is too high and any commercial property at the right price makes sense regardless of the location.

A true commercial real estate broker specializes in only commercial real estate and rarely, if ever, gets involved in residential transactions. Commercial real estate decisions should be based on the economics of the deal and the impact on the overall business. Residential real estate decisions are typically emotional decisions and involve such factors as lifestyle, schools, etc. Commercial real estate brokers are trained to analyze a deal from an owner’s perspective and advise what is in the best interest of their client. Quite often residential brokers will try to represent clients in commercial transactions with often humorous (and disastrous) results.

At Business Real Estate we specialize in only commercial real estate.

There are essentially two ways to approach the task. The first is to try to do it yourself. This usually involves driving around, writing down phone numbers, hoping someone calls you back, meeting at properties (the majority of which won’t work), trying to negotiate a fair deal and then navigating the actual lease document.

The other way is to engage a commercial real estate broker to represent you. The broker’s job is to identify your needs and match you with appropriate properties in the market. (A broker who is truly active in the market will have in his mind several properties before you finish the initial conversation.) The broker will then summarize the potential properties, discuss them with you and arrange showings. Once a property has been selected the broker will negotiate the deal on your behalf. This is critical because the broker is experienced in the nuances of commercial real estate, quite often knows the other broker and owner of the property and is the interface between you and the other parties. Once the deal is done the tenant and landlord have to live with each other for the next few years so it’s better to let the broker handle the sometimes difficult negotiations.

The commercial real estate specialists at Business Real Estate have over 50 years of combined experience in the local market.

First and foremost, hire a commercial broker to represent you regardless of whether you are a buyer, seller, landlord or tenant. Commercial brokers are in the market everyday and focus on their specialty, commercial real estate.

Next, find the broker with the most listings in the area. There’s a reason they have the most listings - they get deals done. Because they have the most signs they get the most calls which is where it all starts. The active brokers in a market will have access to all of the available properties in the market and can leverage this information to their clients’ advantage.

Business Real Estate has more listings and completes more transactions than any other real estate firm in the local market.

In the vast majority of transactions, a commercial broker is paid by the owner of the property. The broker’s compensation is typically a percentage of the value of the transaction and is paid by the seller or landlord at completion of the transaction.

Brokers generally work in two capacities, as listing agents or as tenant/buyer representatives. Some, if not most, do both. If you are working directly with the property listing agent, make no mistake, that broker is working for the property owner. If you hire a tenant rep that also has listings, then you need to have a very good understanding of what listings they have and what conflicts, if any, which creates.

The professionals at Business Real Estate represent property owners, tenants and buyers. We make it very clear to our clients if there is a potential conflict of interest. One of the hallmarks of our firm is that we always try to be ethical and forthright in our dealings.

Base Rent – The amount of rent that represents the return to the owner of the property on their investment. Base rent is usually fixed for the first year of the lease and then escalates either on a fixed percentage basis or in relation to a market index such as CPI.

CAM – CAM stands for Common Area Maintenance and represents the landlord’s expenses to operate and maintain the property. CAM is often a catchall term which includes maintenance, insurance and taxes. Other times these expenses are stated separately in the lease document. It is very important to understand the rights and responsibilities related to CAM.

Triple Net or Gross Lease – A triple net (NNN) lease has separate charges for base rent and CAM, insurance and taxes whereas a gross lease has a single amount which includes all of the charges. Note that all commercial rents in Florida are subject sales tax unless the tenant is an exempt organization.

Common Area Factor – Also known as an Add-on Factor or Load Factor it represents the amount of space expressed as a percentage which is added to the amount of space that the tenant actually occupies. It is the tenant’s proportionate share of the common areas of the building.

Tenant Improvement Allowance – The amount of money which a landlord is willing to contribute to the buildout or renovation of a space to make it useable by the tenant.

We are experienced in bringing all of the aspects of a commercial real estate deal together and making it easy to understand and more importantly, beneficial to our clients.

The length of a lease (“term”) is dependant on a number of factors. Generally speaking, a tenant is able to gain more favorable terms if he is willing to sign for a longer term. This is because a longer term lease takes some of the vacancy loss risk away from the owner of the property. Factors affecting the length of a lease include the financial stability of the tenant, the amount of tenant improvement allowance provided by the landlord, long-term prospects for growth (or contraction) of space requirements, etc.

The professionals at Business Real Estate can help you weigh all of the variables and determine the proper length of a lease to sign.

In a stabilized market, it is typically better to buy than lease if the business intends to occupy the space for longer than five years. This period gives the business enough time to recover the acquisition costs and realize an appreciation on the investment.

At Business Real Estate we have developed a sophisticated Lease vs. Buy Analysis and are happy to go over different scenarios with our clients.

We specialize in commercial real estate in northern Palm Beach County and the Treasure Coast. This includes Jupiter, Tequesta, Juno Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, North Palm Beach, Stuart, Port St. Lucie and Fort Pierce. In addition, we have represented landlords, tenants, buyers and sellers in almost every market in South Florida and have access to the most comprehensive and current commercial real estate information available.

We are the local market experts and can help you make a sound business decision regarding your real estate needs.

Give us a call at 561 624-1420 or send us an email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it We look forward to hearing from you.