gement, ill health or a divorce?and through no fault of the site itself. But if there?s a problem specific to the location, then, as philosopher Edmund Burke is often quoted, ?Those who don?t know history are destined to repeat it.?Investigating the reason for the last tenant?s exit is essential, says Scott Bloom, a New York City commercial real-estate agent who specializes in Manhattan properties. ?Smart businesspeople ask about attractive space that may seem all too available. They want to know, ?Why am I so lucky?? And they should wonder.?
Ask Questions
Among the right questions: Did new competition play a role? Did customer traffic in the neighborhood decline, and why? Are there structural or serious maintenance issues in the space, and if so can they be corrected before a new lease is signed? Further, does the location have any negative image from the previous business that could turn off potential customers?If the former tenant can?t be questioned first-hand, talk to the real-estate agent or owner of the building. Tina Wallace, a commercial real-estate agent in Chicago, says she encourages the owners of her listings to tell what they know. ?I always ask,? she says. But prospective tenants often don?t, she adds.
Some owners hold back information, says Ms. Wallace, and some are in the dark themselves. ?Sometimes we have locations that had been occupied by lemon after lemon, and the building?s owner doesn?t even know what happened?tenants just move out overnight,? she says
To get a landlord to talk, Ms. Wallace and other real-estate agents suggest telling them that it?s essential for you to know some details about the prior business and its exit or there will be no deal. Tell them it?s better to risk losing a prospective tenant than to hide issues that might cause you to abruptly abandon the location in the near future.
Source : online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204475004574126870430048240.html
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