Looking for Profitable Niches in Commercial Real Estate Brokerage

Almost every commercial real estate agent will be looking for some profitable niche to focus on within their industry and city.  That being said, they need to be on the lookout for things that are changing and opportunities that are growing.

Let’s say you are looking for the best listing and commission opportunity.  Let’s also assume that your market is highly competitive.  As a direct result, you will need to be highly relevant when it comes to your market segment, and you will need to be very skilled when it comes to presenting, pitching, and negotiating.  It is easy to see the skills that are required of a top agent or broker in this market.  Practice is required with these skills.

So the focus here is to help you look for the profitable niches that can take you to greater levels of success in real estate listings and commissions.  Here are some ideas to help you with that momentum:

1. Look around your town or your city to understand the factors of growth that apply to the population base, the business community, and the population demographic.  Identify the changes and the opportunities in each case.  Look for the factors of growth both historically and currently.
2. Within your town or city, there will be regions that are more attractive than others when it comes to property ownership, business occupation, business activity, and transport thoroughfares.  Prioritize those areas so that you have some definite zones of focus when it comes to prospecting.
3. Pay close attention to the planning approvals that are being considered by the local building authority.  Look for those new developments that could shape and change the factors of supply and demand for property locally.
4. Commercial, office, industrial, and retail property are all distinct segments of activity.  For example, retail property tends to evolve on a cycle of economic spending.  On the other hand, industrial property activity will be geared to manufacturing and business sentiment, and office property activity tends to support and contain the professional services required by the community and local businesses (including retail and industrial).  The activities of office and industrial property are somewhat linked.  A softening in the industrial property market will eventually have flow through to the office property market.  The logic also works in reverse when growth is occurring.  Retail property tends to stand alone in its own cycle and is based on consumer sentiment and spending patterns.  So you have a few things to look for here when it comes to a profitable property niche.
5. Look for opportunities in both sales and leasing in each market segment.  You can also feed the growth of your property management department from sales and leasing activity.

As you monitor your property market, you can see the opportunities grow and change over time.  Understand your strengths and weaknesses as a broker or an agent, and determine the niche that you can service professionally and accurately.  Ensure that the niche has growth potential over time.  Growth potential should be assessed within the categories of volume, price range, rental, and future enquiry.  The history of the area will also help you establish projections and opportunities in your commercial real estate market.