The Process to Invest in Commercial Real EstateMeet and Analyze Buyer’s Needs
Whether you are a seasoned investor or a first time investor, there’s something important to be said about having the right commercial real estate company backing you up every step of the way. We specialize in Nashville commercial real estate investment and have a proven track record of success. With more than $15 million in sales in recent years, we’re the source for Nashville properties.
We also specialize in representing clients who are out of town. Many of these investors don’t ever visit Nashville, but invest in property as parts of small groups or as investors just getting started. These clients usually invest anywhere from $1 million to up to $10 million into Nashville commercial real estate, and want someone who knows the area, the market and will be comfortable in giving advice on commercial real estate investments.
The first step is a buyer assessment that can be conducted via telephone or in person. We’ll work with you to clarify your goals, both short term and long term for the property. This initial conversation will also let us know about your experience in commercial investment properties so that we can provide you with exactly the level of information that you need to make intelligent choices. We have marketing experience that can help you reach your goals, and whether you are a beginning investor or a seasoned professional, we’ll be able to tailor our service to your needs. We’re looking forward to building a long-term relationship with you and presenting you with new properties to increase your business and expand your commercial real estate investment portfolio.
Match to Current Marketplace
We are plugged in to the most current local, regional and national information centers when it comes to commercial real estate in the Nashville area. From medical centers to multifamily properties, we can get the most current and comprehensive market data. Sources such as Costar, Loop Net, Real Capital Analytics and the Nashville MLS give us unlimited access to the properties available in Nashville and the surrounding area. This means we can present a list to you of properties that best match your investment goals.
Co-Evaluations and Pair down of Matching Properties
Because we are so familiar with the commercial real estate market in the Nashville area, we can prepare a comprehensive report on qualifying properties. We’ll get the rent rolls, comparable sales reports, profit and loss statements and check out the cash flow of a property to help you evaluate the true market value. We’ll also carry out any auditing on leases to verify income and expenses. Each location gets a personal visit from our talented staff, where they evaluate the physical property and check out all structures and property to get an up to date maintenance and repair list. Finally, we’ll bring in demographics information that reveals income levels, area population and daily traffic counts. All this information is brought together to help you make the best decisions possible when looking for commercial real estate investment properties.
Identify Top 3 Prospects
Working together, we’ll present to you the top three properties that best meet your needs as outlined to us. We’ll closely match the properties and give you updates on marketing information as it emerges. We know that competition is fierce and that timing is important, so we’ll waste no time in getting the information in front of you.
Assist in Securing Financing
Through our vast networking resources, we’ll call on three of Nashville’s largest commercial mortgage brokers. They are always happy to provide our investors with a variety of finance options and they are some of the most respected financial lenders in the business, such as Goldman Sachs and Lehman Brothers. Don’t bother with a general phone number when we can give you direct lines to the decision-makers. Whether you want to pay in cash or get financing, our connections in the commercial investment real estate world are ready to go to work for you.
Write a Letter of Intent
When negotiations begin on a commercial property, the letter of intent is the focus of discussions. This two-page document states your intentions on purchasing the property and outlines the price, terms, timeframe, contingencies and any other unique features of the transaction. We have experience in wording strong LOI’s, and we’re familiar with the language of finance and real estate to make the offer clear and direct. Drafting and presenting an LOI can be a tricky part of this phase, but we are ready to lend you our years of experience in helping you draw one up. We realize that an LOI should be strongly worded and indicate that you are a serious buyer with the means to complete the deal. When every party is in agreement upon the letter’s terms, we can draft the formal purchase contract for you and move to the discovery process.
Discovery Process and Due Diligence
Before the contract can be accepted, there is a 60- to 180-day period of discovery. This allows appropriate inspections, tests and surveys to be done to ensure that the property is accurately represented to the buyer. It should be the time for experts to evaluate the property and verify that the commercial investment property is exactly what its supposed to be.
We can put you in touch with the professionals who can inspect and evaluate the property, including structural engineering firms and inspectors. It’s wise to have these inspections done so that any defects are noted and any repairs are addressed before any contracts are signed.
Some of the events and inspections that transpire during this phase are the verification of zoning and permitted usage, title search, tax verification, survey, environmental testing, future use analysis, identifying unused or unutilized space and lifting all contingencies once the process is complete.
Let us minimize stress and anxiety by managing the discovery process for you. We’ll schedule people, manage their time and oversee the whole discovery process from start to finish. There are many complicated technical and legal aspects of this phase, so let us help you cut through the confusion and make things simple and straightforward.
Closing the Deal
When you’ve worked closely with us throughout the process, closing should be a piece of cake. You can trust that our closing attorney has personally reviewed all the documentation is correct and that all the inspections, surveys and tests are in place. We’ll ensure that the seller has provided all the necessary documents to complete the transaction, such as copies of leases, original loan documents, warranties, contracts in force, maintenance agreements and accounting history. There is no need to worry about leases and contracts not remaining in force, because we’ll pay attention to ensure that it happens.
Let CRA Nashville prove why we are the best in the business and why our clients continually return to use our services. We’ll make sure that the closing is as hassle-free as possible, and clients can either attend the closing or choose to proceed with a mail-away closing. Communication is key and we pride ourselves on keeping our clients up to date on every aspect of the transaction. We want to establish a long-term relationship with you and become your exclusive source for information on commercial investments properties in Nashville.
In-House Property Management
Don’t allow our relationship to end after the closing. Instead, use CRA Nashville for your property management needs. We can address every aspect of managing a commercial rental property, from automated rent collection, maintenance, tenant relations and retention and lease negotiation. Our property management division is experienced with retail centers, medical offices, business condos, apartment complexes and industrial property.
We have many clients who use us for their Nashville area property management needs, and are extremely pleased at the level of service that we offer. We focus on maximizing value and cash flow while evaluating risks and assess where we can save you money and increase efficiency. Trust us for your property management needs.
Annual Property Analysis Provided with Tax Returns
You can count on us to provide all the documentation you need to constantly evaluate how your property is performing. We prepare an extensive property analysis report that includes all income and expenses, upgrades, recent sales of comparable properties, available investment opportunities similar to your property, photographed property condition report and recommendations for any future repairs or expansions. This report will be delivered to you with your annual tax returns.
Future Recommendations on When to Sell, Reinvest, 1031, Purchase
As your commercial real estate investment partner, we are aware that you may want to sell or reinvest your commercial property. Traditionally, investment clients want to diversify, reinvest, build or liquidate their portfolio for various investment strategies. We are always on the lookout for investment opportunities that will further advance your investment goals. We’ll keep monitoring the best times to buy, diversify and sell. We’ll also keep you up to date on market trends for the Nashville area. We are completely familiar with the popular reinvestment vehicle known as the 1031 tax deferred exchange. It allows you to reinvest the entire proceeds of a sale without realizing the tax burden at the time of sale. It’s not that simple, however, and successfully filing for the1031 exchange can be frustrating if you don’t know exactly what you are doing. We can help you navigate the strict rules and criteria in order to complete the 1031 tax deferred exchange. We’ve worked successfully with many clients on similar tax deferred exchanges and we are ready to use our skills to benefit you as well. We utilize real estate attorneys that have specialized experience with these kinds of exchanges and can make the 1031 an excellent tool to use in your investment portfolio. |
