Business, Profits and Strategy

Your company's attorney certainly knows leases, especially if he's a specialist in real estate, and he likely understands real estate better than most professionals. Then again, your company's accountant understands the financial and accounting aspects of real estate, too. Hey, you know who else knows real estate? Your company's building contractor...he builds buildings, so he must understand real estate...right? Oh! And, let's not forget the architect, the engineer, the HVAC technician, the furniture dealer, and all of the others who play a highly important role in the selection and operation of your company's real estate.

Let's also remind ourselves, that while each of the above experts may be essential to your company's real estate process, they do have specific roles. And, just because their individual expertises integrates into others doesn't mean that they are sufficiently qualified to complete your company's real estate projects.

First things, first! Assess the type of internal resources that are available for this project:

Andrew B. Zezas, SIOR
Relationship Manager,
Strategist, President
(908) 245-5999 x11
andrew.zezas@realstrat.com

Real estate attorneys play very important roles in our clients' real estate projects. In order to protect our clients' interests, and those of their management and other stakeholders, we typically insist that they engage an experienced and highly qualified real estate attorney...not just any lawyer, but one with precise expertise in the type of real estate, the type of transaction, and the geography in which the client intends to complete its project(s). We also advise our clients to build a complete team of experts to advise them on the specific aspects of their projects. The more complex, sophisticated, or mission-critical a particular project is, the more specialized expertise they may require. In a recent review, we determined that some projects could require as few as two or three disciplines, and others could require twenty, thirty, or more.

The role of the real estate attorney is certainly to protect his or her client's legal interests. An excellent attorney is also one who looks beyond the boundaries of legal experience and advises his or her clients as to the business implications of their alternatives.

But, in a similar vane, the contractor, the accountant, and other professionals should provide similar extensions of their service. Not all service providers take such an approach. In the case of attorneys, accountants, and certain others, fiduciary and other responsibilities make them ethically and duty-bound to protect their clients' interests. But, the best go well beyond their obligations!

The best attorneys are superb at structuring creative legal solutions and tend to be expert negotiators. However, the experienced attorney also recognizes that his level of expertise may be tested by the multiple demands of complex real estate transactions, as can be the case when negotiating business and financial terms. Evaluating the economic impact of a company's current business and real estate circumstances, and planning and executing viable solutions in the context of a company's operational and financial objectives may be best left to those who specialize in such efforts.

Read The CFO's Guide to Understanding Corporate Real Estate Transactions. Order your copy here.

Creating the right real estate solution for most companies requires skill, discipline, the ability to plan and execute based on the clients' precise objectives, the reliance on multiple levels of qualified expertise, and complete, accurate, and timely information. Successful teams most often include multi-disciplined experts in real estate planning and execution, finance, architecture and engineering, workplace studies, law, accounting, strategic business planning, construction, and more. Assuming that any or all of the above are simplistic enough to be left to one of the other service providers is a sure recipe for error. Real estate teams that achieve and/or exceed their clients' objectives are most often lead by a leader who is versed in planning, coordinating, and executing complex and multi-disciplined real estate projects.

Read The CFO's Guide to Hiring the "Right" Real Estate Service Provider. Order your copy here.

So, when considering your company's next real estate project, whether major or minor, give credence to the diversity in the skill sets you'll likely require to achieve the right financial and operational terms, secure maximum flexibility, minimize risk, and protect the interests of the company and its stakeholders. Don't leave a multi-faceted project in the hands of your attorney, or any one professional. Identify your company's precise needs, identify the service professionals who can best accomplish your objective, build the right team, and engage the one who is best qualified to lead your project to success.

Andrew B. Zezas, SIOR, is Relationship Manager, Strategist, and President & CEO of Real Estate Strategies Corporation, Publisher of "Business, Profits and Strategy", a monthly online publication read by thousands of business, financial, and real estate executives nationally, and, is the author of two new real estate books, The CFO's Guide to Understanding Corporate Real Estate Transactions and The CFO's Guide to Hiring the "Right" Real Estate Service Provider, both of which will be available shortly at www.thecfosguide.com.

Mr. Zezas is well-known for his ease and informative style of public speaking, and has given talks, presentations, and has lead educational programs for business, professional, government, and trade associations, including the Building Owners and Managers Association, American Management Association, the U.S. Postal Service, RealComm, Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR), and others. Andrew is National Chairman of the SIOR Tenant Representation Specialty Practice Board, and is a licensed real estate instructor in Texas and Indiana. He can be reached at 908 245 5999 or via email.

Real Estate Strategies Corporation, located in Kenilworth, New Jersey, and serving clients throughout the country, helps companies create and execute Business DRIVEN Real Estate Solutions...and Opportunities, faster and with less risk. Visit www.realstrat.com.

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