The commercial real estate requires considerable expertise!

Are you familiar with the commercial real estate brokerage? This area of practice requires very specific knowledge and skills. If a broker holds a full-service licence, he must master concepts that can be acquired only through training and diligent practice in order to be able to act according to generally accepted practices in his area of practice. Although having a full-service licence is sufficient to practice in the commercial real estate field, if the usual area of practice is residential real estate, it could be useful to take additional training and seek the help of another broker to practice in this field as appropriate.

Differences

Commercial real estate brokerage practices are different from the residential ones. The most obvious practice concerns the types of properties that are at the core of transactions. The agency or broker assists clients in the purchase, sale or leasing of buildings, warehouses, offices or industrial, commercial or agricultural lands.

Among the significant differences between the commercial sector and the residential one, note:

• The transactional documents (forms, contracts);
• The activities carried out in collaboration with tax experts, engineers, environmental specialists or legal experts;
• The financing methods that can be very complex.

Solutions

In accordance with section 73 of Regulation respecting brokerage requirements, professional conduct of brokers and advertising, a broker "must not agree to engage in a brokerage transaction […] that is outside his or her field of expertise without seeking the necessary assistance." Accordingly, if you are a full-service broker working in the residential field and you intend to act in the commercial field, seek the assistance of a commercial real estate broker through co-listing or make a referral, in order to practice ethically and responsibly. In addition, if you have completed a general basic training, it could be useful to take a basic training in commercial brokerage. You may also take various trainings in this field to become more familiar with this practice.

Please note that if you hold a licence restricted to residential brokerage, you cannot perform a purely commercial transaction in co-listing with a broker who is qualified to act in commercial brokerage. 

For more information, read “Residential” or “Commercial” Brokerage: Ethical obligations are the same for all.