Commercial Observer

The glass ceiling needs a shine.

In fairy tales like Snow White, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty, little girls learn that rewards, like a knight in shining armor, are earned by being passive, demure and quiet. The few women who do speak out were usually witches or evildoers. But unlike what we were told in these fairy tales, women are born for business.

Today, studies show that women process about 20,000 words per day, while men process about 7,000. Women have approximately 11 percent more brain cells responsible for language. Women can speak at a speed of 250 words per minute and have 12 percent more neurons in the area of the brain responsible for memory, feelings and critical thinking. Read More

With reality shows and the internet glorifying the heady prices of retail condos, skyscraper office buildings, five-star hotels, luxury apartment buildings, trophy apartments and McMansions, it’s no wonder that sideline spectators are enviously calculating the millions of dollars that brokers must make as the gatekeepers of real estate heaven.

Given the high stakes involved in achieving premium prices, how do you get that maestro of a broker to work her magic for you? Not just anyone can convince buyers why they should pay a premium. Not just anyone can get a more qualified buyer on the phone, or source those under-the-radar buyers whom very few brokers have access to. Not just anyone can create a competitive environment while at the same time orchestrating a quiet selling arena where a premium is paid for the privilege of seeing this opportunity. Read More

My son, who was born and raised in the heart of Manhattan, came home from college for the summer. His first day out for a drive across town sent him into frenzy. He was used to some sort of semblance in the traffic patterns of the already unpredictable New York City drivers. However, he was unprepared for the confusing palette of newly colored street lanes, designs, plazas and pathways. Red for bus lanes, white for God alone knows what, yellow for plows and green for bikes or people, whichever dared step in first.

Once he put aside his road rage, he begged me to explain how one was supposed to make intelligent choices when signals can be so misleading. I realized he was on to something. Finding the right platform to associate oneself within the brokerage industry can now be as exhausting and frustrating as the city’s confusing tangle of street patterns. Read More

You’ve been working tirelessly, all summer long, on a really exciting, quiet, below-the-radar real estate deal.
After hours of careful planning to ensure success and predict any possible roadblocks, you create the perfect package to showcase the property’s unique attributes as well as address all of the owner’s possible concerns.

Several meetings later, the owner finally hires you to represent her exclusively in the marketing of her asset. You know you can get this deal done, but the seller gave you a short window. You have 30 days to get an acceptable offer into contract. Having spent the time exploring the best possible outcome, you are confident that you can deliver what you promised. Read More

Truly great brokers can be likened to sculptors. As a sculptor takes a lump of clay and sees a statue of David, a creative broker sees a building and envisions more than just bricks and mortar. Exceptional brokers are visionaries who see all of the unique possibilities in every deal.

They connect situations to the appropriate buyers who will bring out the essence of their value. They navigate each deal carefully and methodically with artistic flair to uncover the gem that will bring that deal to life. Read More

Super-sized, mid-sized, mini or bite-sized, brokerage firms run the gamut from global mega giants the size of a small city to as minimalistic as a one-person show.
Bigger doesn’t always mean better and good things don’t always come in small packages. Read More

Almost every broker you speak with will tell you that they have the most extensive database of buyers for any given property on any given day, and that they will expose the deal to a universe full of prospective buyers.

They will boast about how wide their firm’s reach is and how important it is that you list with them in order to tap into their treasure chest of clandestine investors. Be it international, national, local or targeted, only they have access to the plethora of buyers every property must be seen by in order to garner a competitive atmosphere for bidding up the price on the market.

Almost every buyer you speak with will tell you that they prefer not to chase market deals, because the perception is that they have been picked over, shopped to death and cheapened by overexposure. Very few buyers will admit that they actually like to look at a property that everyone else is reviewing. Some will even whisper that they only want to view “virgin” deals.

Almost every seller you speak with will tell you that they just want the highest price.

So how do you reconcile all these factions into a successful sale? Read More

One of the most challenging aspects of a broker’s career is accurately determining if the purchaser you are working with can ultimately close a deal.

The probability of successfully closing a transaction is what divides an exceptional broker or agent from an average one. You’re not in Kansas anymore, Dorothy! You need the courage to get off the Yellow Brick Road and pull back the curtain on your buyers. Read More