How to Succeed in Commercial Real Estate [Paperback]

John L. Bowman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2004

How to Succeed in Commercial Real Estate is a comprehensive, practical book for those considering entering the field of commercial real estate, those just beginning in the business, as well as experienced brokers and sales managers who want to evaluate and strengthen their current strategies—especially those related to listings, negotiations, contracts, and sales.

The author provides a straightforward overview of the business of selling commercial property, including coverage of the four main specialty areas –retail, office, industrial, and investment—as well as crossovers and emerging specialties. Rather than pumping a "get rich quick" approach to selling, the author shows brokers that they don’t have to sacrifice integrity and ethics to remain competitive and deal oriented. The book includes detailed coverage of

• Choosing a company and a specialty that’s a good fit for you.
• Sales strategies and sales points specific to commercial real estate, including practical suggestions for countering other brokers.
• The importance of focusing on exclusive listings, how to find and get the best prospects, and the most effective strategies for marketing the property.
• Standard parts and points of negotiation for contracts and forms, including earnest money agreements, leases, options, listings, counter offers, and fee schedules.
• Rent and how it is calculated and quoted, including triple net, modified net, gross, and full service leases.
• Technical knowledge including agency, law, appraisal, taxation, zoning, surveys, environmental investigations, investment analysis, risk comparison, exchanges, financing, and property management.
•The pros and cons of going independent and how to decide if it’s the right move for you.

Written in an engaging, straight-talk style, the author shares a wealth of other practical knowledge reaped from 30 years in the business.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A good basic introduction for anyone considering becoming a commercial real estate broker. The author has an entertaining writing style." -- Jay Jacobsmuhlen, SIOR, Lance Denning Properties, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

John Bowman has been active in commercial real estate for more than 30 years as a salesman, broker, or manager for more than 30 years. He started in his family’s commercial real estate company, Bowman Company, located in Portland, Oregon, where he became sales manager, president, and a part owner. In 1983 Bowman Company joined forces with Portland’s largest commercial firm, Norris, Beggs and Simpson, where the author spent 10 years as an industrial broker. He started his own commercial real estate company, John L. Bowman, Realtor® in 1992. He was a member of the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors®, president of the SIOR Oregon Chapter, member of the SIOR national board of directors, and board member of the Oregon and Southwest Washington Commercial Association of Realtors®. He has also served on various association committees including Professional Standards.

The author specialized in industrial real estate, but has had experience in all areas of the business. He has done real estate deals in office, retail, and investments and is also experienced in land sales, high-tech, and exchanges. He has also had experience managing commercial real estate sales people and operating a commercial real estate office. The author has represented many national companies in their real estate dealings including General Electric, Westinghouse, Coca-Cola, and Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co.

Product Details

• Paperback: 316 pages
• Publisher: Mesa House Publishing (October 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0940352168
• ISBN-13: 978-0940352162
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #148,416 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #84 in Books > Business & Investing > Real Estate > Buying & Selling Homes

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A plain-terms guide to buying commercial property, January 7, 2005

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Succeed in Commercial Real Estate (Paperback)

How To Succeed In Commercial Real Estate is a plain-terms guide to buying commercial property, drawn from the author's experience in 30 years of the business. Chapters cover points specific to commercial real estate, including suggestions for countering other brokers; the importance of exclusive listings; how rent is calculated and quoted; technical knowledge with regard to law, appraisal, taxation, zoning, surveys, and environmental investigations, among other topics; the pros and cons of going independent; and much more. A no-nonsense guide accessible to readers of all familiarity levels with the world of real estate, and highly recommended reading for anyone about to take the plunge and invest thousands or even millions of dollars into commercial property.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great introduction to commercial real estate, August 1, 2005

By 

Andrew Rice (West Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Succeed in Commercial Real Estate (Paperback)

I purchased this book along with another one,(...) I feel even better about this subject and gaining even more confidence when I'm practicing my profession. This is the reason I'm sending in my review as well.

This book is great if you're getting into the world of commercial real estate and need to have someone explain the myriad areas of general knowledge to you. It's basically what you might expect if you had a mentor or coach to help you get started, which is hard to come by in the competitive real estate environment. It won't tell you the "nuts & bolts" that are part of the nitty-gritty side of the business.

It was useful in that it helped me to "fill in the blanks" where I had a few questions about the commercial side of real estate. Since I'm already a practicing residential real estate and have a corporate/financial background, the book didn't dazzle me with things I carried over from my residential or business experiences.

In short, I recommend it to someone who is new to the business or if you're a residential agent who occasionally dabbles into it. It will give you a good, general overview and suggest areas where you can establish sound fundamentals that are required for a success career.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great primer for someone about to take the plunge, April 26, 2005

By 

JA from CT (Connecticut) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Succeed in Commercial Real Estate (Paperback)

For someone looking to enter the brokerage side of the business I found this book to be a great primer. The book is not meant to be an in depth educational tool so the person who gave it such a negative review probably was expecting something completely different. If your new to commercial brokerage or looking to get into it, this book will help you with some key issues and highlight some important areas about the business that you may not have known. For instance, the difference in working for a regional or a national and selecting your firm to work for, your area of specialty, some key terms and vocab you need to know and common mistakes made by newbies that you can look out for and avoid. If you have been in the business for a couple of years, then this book probably won't help you too much but if you're about to start interviewing with firms I highly reccommend reviewing this book beforehand to get you thinking on the right track and asking the right questions.