Archive for the ‘Finding Office Space’ Category

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Lease Locally

Wednesday, May 16th, 2012

Narrow your focus

Do you need a firm with an “international platform” to do an office lease deal in Kansas City?

You don’t – you need a firm that will get market-best results because they know the metropolitan Kansas City market.

Let’s start by understanding that virtually all of the national firms proudly state they should represent you because they have a “global outsourcing platform” for services ranging from all forms of brokerage, property management, facility management, project management, capital markets, development, investment, valuation advisory services, and more. The inference being that a cast of thousands is at your beck and call to provide whatever services you need wherever in the world you need it.

So, are the big firms better?

I have been with big firms. I know how they work. The reality is that tenant reps typically operate in teams of one or two people. Some of these “teams” are exclusively dedicated to tenant representation. Some are doing both tenant rep and landlord rep. Either way, the team is small.

So, the comparison you need to make is between the teams consisting of the brokers who will represent you on the ground in Kansas City – not the thousands of corporate employees spread around the world. And it’s in your best interest to find a team that exclusively represents tenants and not landlords too.

Wally & Co. exclusively represents tenants. Our team used to be the tenant rep team at CBRE, and before that at Trammell Crow Company. We’re the same team that qualified for the TCC’s Top 40 Brokers. We do everything we did in those days, and more, for our clients today.

 

Call us. We’ll talk. You’ll understand our value.

Think Wally & Co. We negotiate leases on your terms.

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Find the Right Fit

Friday, May 4th, 2012

Don’t judge a building by its cover

Do you think of office space as a commodity? That all spaces and buildings are alike?

Office buildings are not all alike.

· Spaces do different things for your employees.
· Locations do different things for your image.
· Buildings are not equally efficient.

 

At Wally & Co., we understand this and can help you understand it too.

Take the last one for example – Buildings are not equally efficient. I wrote a blog titled, “The Cheapest Rate Per Square Foot Does Not Mean That Is The Cheapest Space.” In it, I explained how your firm’s space needs will be vary from building to building.

Until you know the results of ‘test fits’ in the buildings you like, you won’t know how much the real rent cost is. And sometimes, the buildings with highest rent per square foot are actually the cheapest because they have a more efficient space layout.

So don’t hastily judge a building based on its quoted rent, or where it is located.

 

Call us. We’ll talk. You’ll understand our value.

Think Wally & Co. We negotiate leases on your terms.

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The Power of Attraction

Thursday, April 19th, 2012

The right vibe matters

Do you ever connect ‘sex appeal’ with office leasing?

In the American Heritage Dictionary, one of the definitions of sex appeal is, “General appeal; power to interest or attract.”

Tenants can have sex appeal to landlords. It may be name recognition, quality image or great creditworthiness.

At Wally & Co., part of our job is to maximize your firm’s sex appeal to landlords. We think it’s part of getting you the best deal. It’s part of the ‘art’ of a deal and we think it’s foolish not to capitalize on your brand.

 

Call us. We’ll talk. You’ll understand our value.

Think Wally & Co. We negotiate leases on your terms.

 

 

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Think it’s impossible to find an unbiased tenant rep?

Friday, February 24th, 2012

Your search is not in vain. We exist.

Looking for a tenant rep who’s smart, tough and un-conflicted?

Everybody says they are ‘smart’ and ‘tough’, but un-conflicted? Is that even possible?

At Wally & Co., you can have it all.

We never represent a landlord. We only represent tenants.

Why does this matter? I wrote a blog post entitled “Conflicts of Interest – Part 1: Why You Should Care” There’s also a “Part 2: My Unique Viewpoint from the Other Side.”

These posts explain:

  • The subtle legalities that allow real estate brokers to represent both sides in a transaction,
  • Why not being exclusively represented by a tenant rep costs you money, and
  • How full-service firms try to implement ‘Chinese walls’ (and why they don’t work).

Just remember, if they’re representing both sides, they’re not truly representing you.

At Wally & Co., you, the tenant, are the highest priority.

 

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To Look, or Not To Look?

Friday, February 10th, 2012

Is it ever too early to start looking for office space?

Have you ever wondered, ‘when should I start to look for office space?’

It’s almost never too early. I wrote a blog post entitled “Time is Your Friend,” that discusses the importance of giving your real estate deal plenty of time, and what can happen when you don’t.

The 2 things to remember are:

  • It’s better to start too early than too late for creating negotiating leverage, and
  • It may not have any connection to when your lease expires

Every situation is unique so strategies vary. But if you think you want, or need, to do something different with your lease or your space, chances are we’ve had experience doing it.

At Wally & Co., we can help you figure out your timetable and so much more.

Wally & Co. exclusively represent tenants.  Please call us to discuss your next project  and learn why Wally & Co. wants to be your partner, not just a vendor.

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“…And on the left, you’ll see another fountain!”

Friday, January 27th, 2012

Do you think of tenant reps as “glorified tour guides”?

I didn’t make that term up. I heard it from a prospective client once based on his experience with tenant rep brokers who didn’t seem to do anything but drive the client around – and collect a commission.

We are so much more. It’s our goal to be your partner, not your chauffeur. How do we add value to tenant representation?

It starts with understanding:

  • What you want to do with your office space – relocate or renew – and why?
  • What’s your budget?
  • What will help you recruit and retain the best, most productive employees?
  • What will impress your clients?
  • What’s your timetable?
  • And so on…

Then, we can intelligently advise you on what your choices are and create a strategy to get you the best possible deal on the best space for you.

Wally & Co. exclusively represent tenants.  Please call us to discuss your next project  and learn why Wally & Co. wants to be your partner, not just a vendor.

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More Than a Building

Friday, January 6th, 2012

What does office space do for your company?

Most of our clients feel the most important aspect to finding office space is to help recruit and retain the best, most productive employees.

Most real estate brokers don’t focus on anything but buildings. They think that real estate is the “dog” and everything else is the “tail.” But we know that people costs are far more expensive than real estate costs. So your building is a tool that supports your “people priorities” by:

  • being located within an easy commute from home
  • being secure
  • having enough parking
  • having access to restaurants and other amenities
  • having the right image. And so on…

The great news is we have done this analysis for many clients – both subjectively and objectively.

At Wally & Co., we understand that a great real estate deal needs to please the head of HR and the CFO.

Wally & Co. exclusively represent tenants.  Please call us to discuss your next project  and learn why Wally & Co. wants to be your partner, not just a vendor.

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Conflicts of Interest – Part 2: My Unique Viewpoint from the Other Side

Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011

In my last blog, I asked “Why you should care?” about conflicts of interest.   The subject of conflicts of interest is a difficult one.  It is difficult because it is not our style to speak negatively about our competitors.  We would rather earn the right to your business on our merits, not on the negatives of our competitors.

It is also difficult because the concept of “dual agency” (representing both sides in a transaction) is allowed by the Kansas and Missouri Real Estate Commissions, if it is disclosed.  So real estate conflicts of interest are acceptable in many persons’ eyes.

The reality is that conflicts of interest do matter because they cost you money.

Wally & Co. is structured to avoid conflicts of interest in several key ways.

First, no one in our firm lists property for sale or lease.  Our activities on behalf of clients are consistently focused on driving down occupancy costs of all types and negotiating the most favorable business terms.  Therefore, we aren’t ever in the situation that many agents get into where they are interchangeably advocating for higher prices when they are representing a landlord, and advocating for lower prices when they are representing a tenant.  To be in that position can erode the credibility, and more importantly, the negotiating strength, of an agent to the point of being ineffective.

Next, because we never represent a landlord, we are never concerned with the temptation, felt by many “dual agents”, that all landlords may be a prospective property-listing client in the future.  Such concerns may serve to soften that agent’s negotiating aggression on the part of a tenant rep client like you.

Wally & Co. exclusively represent tenants.  Please call us to discuss your next project and learn why Wally & Co. wants to be your partner, not just a vendor.

 

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The Term “Complex” Is Almost Too Simple…

Tuesday, June 15th, 2010

I just heard the above phrase describing today’s society in general, and I think it really applies to the question of why tenants need to engage a tenant representation broker.

Most of our posts describe the numerous complexities involved in new lease or lease renewal situations.   We’ve discussed that there are over 25 financial components of a lease and the intricacies of how landlords measure office space. We’ve discussed how to maximize the advantage of timing when it comes to starting negotiations.  And we have discussed the complexities and different perspectives about ever-changing market conditions.  And we’ll discuss more, similarly complex issues, in future posts.

But what struck me about the phrase, “the term “complex” is almost too simple,” is that we haven’t talked about coordinating all these pieces of the tenant representation process into a cohesive, successful strategy.   That is where the real art, and challenge, of representing tenants comes into play.   I submit that none of this is easy, which is why I think tenants need to be exclusively represented in the first place.

We believe the real differentiator between us and our competition is our ability to create (and execute) a strategy combining all these complex, diverse pieces in a way that will succeed both for the tenant and the landlord.  This is best explained by another of my favorite phrases, “this isn’t cookie-cutter stuff.”    No two deals are alike.  Timing, market conditions, the mood about the economy and a long list of other things must be understood in order to create the right strategy.

Regardless of when your lease expires, let’s talk soon to get to know each other, discuss your real estate goals and let us demonstrate to you why Wally & Co. is a partner, not a vendor. Contact us today.

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Subleases Lurking In Southern Joco

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010

The above is the title of a front-page article in a recent Kansas City Business Journal.  The subtitle is, “Office space keeps lease rates down”.  The article uses the event of the latest piece of big sublease space coming to market – the 90,000 square foot former Fort Dodge Animal Health headquarters at Corporate Woods – as a discussion of how sublease space keeps popping up with a depressive effect on  rental rates and new development.  In fact one broker/developer was quoted saying these new spaces “hurt future development.”

Okay, but what about the positive effects for tenants resulting from an increasing supply of quality office space in one of the metropolitan area’s most desirable office submarkets?  Or the fact that some tenants may be motivated to move, expand or renew by greater supply and lower rental rates?  Or that the availability of numerous big blocks of contiguous space in quality buildings may attract new businesses simply because it boasts attractive rates?

It’s all about timing and perspective.

The worst timing I recall was in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s because there was single digit vacancy and high tenant demand, resulting in high rental rates.  Kansas City lost some deals because there wasn’t any quality space to lease and/or the tenants couldn’t afford it anyway.  Ironically, low unemployment here made recruiting difficult, creating a second hurdle to new business attraction.

Perspective-wise, while landlords and tenants need each other, the Business Journal article seems to suggest that what’s bad for developers/landlords is bad for Kansas City.  Because we exclusively represent tenants, including one that just leased 175,000 square feet of sublease space at the Sprint Campus, we think more choices and lower rates are a good thing.

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