FAQ

How will I benefit by using a broker?

"...the landlord will reduce our rental rate if we renew our lease without a brokers assistance."

Renewals are in most instances the landlord most profitable transaction. When tenants relocate, the costs of improvements to the new space are incorporated in the new lease as rent. Although most lease renewals involve little or no construction, rarely do landlords offer rates that truly reflect the reduced transaction costs.

If the landlord suggests not using a broker, it may be to avoid negotiating against someone who knows what’s being saved in build out costs and other non-economic areas of the lease.


“Why should I choose Chicago Broker over some of the larger, national real estate firms?”

Unlike the national firms, when you work with Chicago Broker, you will be working with an experienced, seasoned agent with a minimum of 7 years in the commercial real estate business. At the larger firms, your requirement (if less than 25,000 ft.) will likely be handled by a new agent with very little experience. You will be their trial and error training experiment.


”What resources will Chicago Broker offer to assist me with my transaction?”

We rely heavily on the latest technologies to keep ourselves and our clients well informed about market conditions and opportunities. In addition to the hands on experience provided by our professionals, we have assembled a team of space planners, contractors, telephone specialists, wiring contractors, and furniture vendors to assist our clients in their lease or purchase transaction. We also utilize proprietary databases such as Co/Star database, Loopnet, and the Multiple Listing Service to search and list properties.


"We've enjoyed a long term relationship with the building and hiring a broker might hurt that relationship."

Real estate is an investment. Landlords hire professional leasing agents to negotiate the highest returns and the best lease terms for the building ownership. If the agent for the building can negotiate a higher rental rate and structure better terms for the ownership, they will.

It improves the landlord’s bottom line and that broker’s bank account.

What concerns you more: cutting your occupancy costs or offending someone hired to negotiate against you?


"...we like our current space and we don't want to move out."

The key to any successful negotiation is obtaining the best leverage. A tenant who renews without a broker's assistance is conveying the message that no other buildings are being considered. Without the broker creating leverage for the tenant, There will be no motivation on the landlord's part to be competitive and dig deep to make a deal. Chicago Broker finds alternative properties and uses them negotiate terms to your advantage. We do the market research, prequalify the alternatives, collect and organize the information and assist each of our clients in negotiating the lowest rental rates and most tenant friendly terms.


"How can you get paid by the Landlord if you are representing us?"

In most cases, building owners hire leasing agents or even property managers to find tenants for their building. In return, the owner agrees to pay them a commission for their efforts. The catch is that they need to negotiate the highest possible rents and the most landlord favorable lease terms that they possibly can. Since the owners representative depends heavily on outside brokers for most of their tenant leads, it is customary that they agree to split commissions with tenant representatives.

Real Estate law simply requires "tenant representative" brokers to notify the owner, or the owner's agent, that they are representing the buyer or tenant in each transaction.

Chicago Broker has been active in the Chicago area representing tenants since 1989. We maintain good relationships with the major property leasing and management companies and they fully understand that they will be responsible for our compensation should a lease be consumated.


"If I use a tenant broker, will my rental rate be higher to reflect the commissions?"

Our fees are usually paid by the landlord. The landlord pays their leasing agent a fee and they split the fee with Chicago Broker. If a tenant broker is not involved in the transaction, the building agent still receives a full commission. In our experience, straight lease renewals usually result in a decreased rental rate structure and improved terms for the tenant. Depending on the market, size of the space, nature of tenant and the amount of construction required in the original lease, this decrease can be anywhere from 5% to 40%.


”When should I start the process??”

One of the biggest mistakes tenants make at the end of their lease term is waiting too long before starting the search for new space or the negotiation of a lease renewal.

A 7,000 square foot tenant that waits until 90 days prior to their lease expiration to ask their landlord for a lease renewal is basically telling the landlord that they are not considering any other options.

The landlord knows that competing buildings will most likely have to create a space plan, get construction pricing, agree on a rental rate, prepare and execute a lease document, apply for construction permits and prepare the space for occupancy. This is typically a 4 to 6 month process.

Depending on the size of your office requirement, you may want to allow the following lead times to properly negotiate your office lease:

Office Size Lead Time
1,000 - 3,000 Square Feet: 4 To 6 Months
3,000 - 10,000 Square Feet: 6 To 8 Months
10,000 - 20,000 Square Feet: 8 Months To One Year
Above 20,000 Square Feet: Up to 18 Months In Advance