commercial real estate

Glengarry Glen Ross has to be the best real estate movie ever. If you haven’t seen it, you owe it to yourself to pick it up and watch it. All star cast but worth it for the Alec Baldwin monologue. Widely considered the highlight of the film, it was the only part of the movie David Mamet didn’t write.

We are reaching a point in the economic cycle where it is time to start tracking distressed properties.

Look for the legal announcements in the newspaper highlighting foreclosure proceedings on commercial properties. You’ll be able to pick them out because you know the market and recognize the address, or by the loan amount listed.

I recommend that you then call the lender and not the property owner. You can find the lender most often because lenders typically record a UCC filing statement with the government to document their lein on the property. These UCC filings may be listed online, or you may need to head to your local courthouse or records office to find them.

Call the lender and find out who deals with “troubled loans” and who deals with “REO” (real estate owned). You can broker the sale of the note to an investor (perhaps at a discount). If that doesn’t fly you will want to stay in regular touch with the lender who may ultimately foreclose on the property…or the borrower may just hand the keys back to the lender.

Position yourself as the local market expert and secure an exclusive listing to sell the property!