Help! I am going to be given several Retail Listings in NY. How do I learn the industry fast?
Hi!

Through a series of fortunate events, I am going to be given LARGE commercial storefront retail spaces from $10K/month to over $50k/month.

I am a real estate agent with Sales, Management, and Rental Experience. And I've rented some office spaces (small like $2K/month). Going from apartment rentals and sales experience, is there that much difference in commercial retail storefronts?

I have the listings; I'm guessing a lot of what I'm doing is marketing and advertising it online.

Is there anything else I should really be doing? Do I need like a Rolodex of customers already? 

I do not want to give up this opportunity or pass up on it. I might never get it again. The owners know I have NO experience in commercial real estate but am willing to work with me (as long as I can produce).

What am I missing or what do I have to learn differently than doing rentals or sales? Is there anything vastly different that I am not seeing?
[{"id": "exjhkwy", "text": "Are they in NYC? Commercial re lawyer here - I can give you the scoop. Pm me", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "exjhtqc", "text": "I\u2019m not sure what your relationship is to the client but I\u2019d advise you bring an agent that specializes in retail leasing on the listings. They\u2019ll be able to run the marketing process and as a team you\u2019ll be able to add more value to your client.", "replies": [{"id": "exjk93j", "text": "This is the right answer. You need years of experience to avoid getting wrecked on this assignment. Partner with someone who is really good at it. You bring the listing, they bring the experience to actually turn that into a paycheck.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}, {"id": "exjl113", "text": "This right here. You have no time to crash-course this one. Better partner up or threaten that existing relationship through inexperienced errors.\n\nEdit: I would also add that, assuming that you would like to learn more about CRE or are considering a transition, when you do partner up, try to be a sponge and learn as much as you can from the broker about the industry lingo and ins-and-outs.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "exjnvu4", "text": "refer it out to someone who knows what they\u2019re doing &amp; take the easy chunk &amp; dont get into legal trouble.. unless you can find a mentor", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "exjocxg", "text": "Figure out what they are worth with comps. Find all the local retail brokers in the market and call them all up and see if they have any tenants looking for space. Take a look at competing properties. \n\nTake a look at the last leases signed at this space. Find out ways to improve these leases or ways you could get horribly fucked. \n\nIt is only money if you make a deal. The landlord could be setting you up to fail for reasons you cannot understand. Figure out what kind of listing agrement you have in place, it could be that you think you are listing the space but really everyone is listing the space. See if the space is already on Costar or Loopnet. \n\nDetermine a marketing budget for signs. Figure out the zoning and parking the property. Find out what permittable uses exist. Figure out what will not work. Figure out how much the landlord is willing to spend in TI, and what types of credit he expects. Call your local building and safety department to see about local sign ordinances. See what kind of insurance you would need on the space and if there is any deferred maintenance. Suck a dick. Make sure that you have a written leasing agreement in place. See if there are any co-tenancy clauses that will limit the types of tenants that can occupy the space. See if there is a significant homeless population, often as a leasing agent you are a defeecto property manager. See what the past three years of energy and water usage is on the property.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "exk2rou", "text": "If they know you have no experience, then they must be confident in themselves and mostly want you to help with the advertising to find a client. So do the best you can, similar to a sale. Get it out there as many places as you can.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "exkorvk", "text": "Find a mentor/co-list (half a commission is more than no commission), join CCIM and use this to work towards earning your designation.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "exkqbro", "text": "Yes, there is an ENORMOUS difference between residential and commercial.  Commercial is mostly about the numbers.  You have to know the property's nets, know the difference between gross leases, net leases, absolute net leases.  Need to understand % sales rents and how to calculate break-even points.  Retail adds a whole other layer because you'll need to understand demographic profiles and the metrics that are important in the industry.  You need to understand how to show a landlord the cash flow of a deal and how it will affect is ROI and IRR, and whether or not they should give a tenant TIs.  You need to have access to commercial listing sites like costar and loopnet...\n\nWhat i'm saying is you definitely shouldn't take this listing on your own.  Find someone with retail experience to work with.  If you're in a market with any kind of velocity, and you don't know what you're doing, this listing is going to get poached almost immediately.  At the very least, you're going to be spending a hell of a lot of time learning material that you'll never use again when you should be out making deals in your core business.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}]