Tips for Negotiating Your Commercial Property Deal

Successful negotiation skills are an art form and must be mastered for you to achieve your investment goals. People who put negotiations on the back burner thinking that they’ll get by or they’ll let someone else handle the deal will often find that they end up with a whole load of work without the pay off. Here are a few tips for negotiating your commercial property deal.

Tip #1: Do Your Homework

You’ll need to know everything you possible can about the property, the sellers, and any related pieces of information that forms the big picture in your mind of what you’re dealing with. You’ll want to be familiar with facts and figures as much, if not more than, the owners themselves.

Tip #2: Learn to Handle the Negotiations

No one is more motivated than you in getting this deal done. For that very reason, make it a point to brush up on your people skills and learn to handle the negotiations yourself. The negotiation process is the deal breaker and leaving it in the hands of someone else who isn’t as motivated as you is risky. With that in mind, there is one exception to that rule – if you have a person on your team (i.e. – real estate agent or lawyer) who is able to successfully handle the deal. This means you know how they operate and what their competence level is because you’ve seen it first hand; not because they told you they’re good at it. They also know you; what your goals are and how you would handle any situations that arise during the negotiation process.

Tip #3: Determine Outcomes before You Even Get to the Table

Before you begin negotiating your first commercial property deal, have a game plan. Determine what key points you want to target during the discussion and the outcomes you want. What price do you want? What terms will you settle for? Are there any changes you want to make in what you originally offered? Be specific. Be up front about everything you’re asking for.

Tip #4: Be Easy to Work With

Be accommodating, encouraging, and motivating at every opportunity. Help the sellers get settled in before your meeting and make small talk with them. Convey an attitude of sincerity and empathy. No matter how heated the discussions get, remain pleasant throughout. People want to work with people who make it easy to work with.

Tip #5: Listen for Clues Pertaining to the Seller’s Motivation

Everyone wants the best deal they can possible get. While it’s a dream to have all the terms of your offer approved by the seller, it’s probably more likely, that you’ll have to navigate your way through one or two obstacles. At this point, it’s necessary to listen for clues that will help to bridge the gap between you and the seller. If you find that they aren’t telling you anything, don’t be afraid to politely ask.

Tip #6: Always Create a Win-Win Situation

Both parties need to walk out of the deal feeling that they were the winners. You help solve their problems and they help to solve yours. This is where your people skills will come into play more significantly than at any other point in the deal. Be a person that closes the gap of differences by building bridges. Study personalities and know how much you can push them without adding so much pressure as to push them right out your door.

Tip #7: Go Above and Beyond

As a successful negotiator, you’ll also want to under-promise and over-deliver. You want to be a “deal magnet” and set yourself up for future deals. This means going above and beyond what others are willing to do. For example, doing the small stuff like being on time, delivering paperwork earlier than you said you would, and being extremely courteous causes you to be remembered.

Successfully negotiating a commercial property deal is more than just facts and figures. The art of the deal involves people skills, bridging gaps, and going above and beyond what you’re required to do. Using these tips will not only land you a successful deal, but it’ll also jump start your deal attraction machine.