Commercial Investment Real Estate is the magazine of the CCIM Institute, the leading provider of commercial real estate education. CIRE covers market trends, current developments, and business strategies within the commercial real estate field.
Issue link: http://cire.epubxp.com/i/923123
COMMERCIAL INVESTMENT REAL ESTATE 32 January | February 2018 "It's through this team approach and team of pro- fessionals that we're best able to service all of our cli- ents' needs," says Koenigsberg, owner of American Investment Properties in Garden City, N.Y. "We only do investment sales within our local marketplace. Through the years, our business has progressed into larger transactions and more complicated assign- ments. We have become the dominant local market leader and market experts." Koenigsberg has structured his business only to work for sellers who own commercial real estate prop- erty. His team only sells exclusive listings and focuses on Long Island in Nassau and Suffolk counties. "By aligning our interests with our customers, we can best optimize commercial real estate profits," Koenigsberg says. Creating Value Starting his career as a commercial appraiser in early 2000, Brian Frank, CCIM, GAA, MRICS, opened his own business in 2008 after his employer discon- tinued business operations. By 2009, he earned the CCIM designation to learn more about commercial real estate from the investors' perspective. "This perspective distinguished my business from other appraisers' firms," says Frank, owner of AK A Accurate Services LLC in Chandler, Ariz. "We look at values based on a five- to seven-year holding period. Earning the CCIM was one of my best business decisions of my career." Sometimes the best deal is the deal that doesn't get done, according to David Ahn, CCIM, owner at CRE/Companies in Los Angeles. He finds that persuading a new client not to do a deal can set the stage for a long-term client relationship. "One of our larger clients gave us their entire book of business because we told them not to do a deal," Ahn says. "The firm's president told me, 'No one ever told us that before.' " Ahn structured his firm to be client-centric, not task-oriented. As a result, his team can build rela- tionships with clients and offer a wider variety of services, including due diligence, real estate analysis, and expert witness services. "If I were in a larger brokerage, I would have to focus on a specific area and could not explore all ave- nues of the commercial real estate industry," Ahn says. Value creation works to wow new clients. "I don't expect an opportunity until I create value for a prospective client," says Drew Augustin, CCIM, owner of Alliance Commercial Group in India- napolis. "I collect clients' goals up front. We start with the end in mind and show the clients where we are going and why." Leveling the Playing Field Throughout its 51-year history, the Institute has always provided superior technology for its mem- bers. It helps the smaller companies compete with larger firms. "Belonging to the Institute gives you a superior playing field," Hand says. "I've worked for all the big firms. I have never had a big firm give me better tech- nology that makes me a better broker as CCIM does." Since 2000, the Institute has provided its mem- bers with free access to Site To Do Business, which offers technology from such companies as Esri and BAO. "STDB allows me to generate reports that Finding the Right Niche by Sara S. Patterson Developing a specific niche helps independent business owners become successful. The choice depends on the commercial real estate professionals' individual strengths and varies widely. DOWNTOWN NICHE. Growing up in downtown Boise, Idaho, Jay Story, CCIM, left the city for undergraduate and graduate school. But he returned to his birthplace to start his first profes- sional job. "Boise has become a destination city for Idaho," says Story, owner of Story Commercial in Boise. "My passion is working with buyers and sellers from different property sectors in down- town Boise within a 1.4-square-mile area." Four years ago, his focus came in handy when the City of Boise asked him to help revitalize the West End section of its downtown. To date, Story has helped to bring in a new commu- nity college, new hospital, and new apartments. "First, I had to think about how to create a neighborhood identity; second, how to celebrate what was there; and third, how to remove the barriers to development," he says. "It started by getting 80 acres rezoned and gaining the support of the major land owners." RESTAURANT NICHE. Working in restaurants in high school and college, Steve Graul, CCIM, knew the environment and language of the industry. During the 1991 recession, he started working with restaurants and developed relationships with chefs. When Graul launched his own business in 1997, he stuck to what he knew best — empowering emerging restaurant companies