Can you hire a broker for a flat fee to help with the lease negotiation?

 I have found the place, but am a little lost now that we are soon to be talking about the lease. I have a general idea, but the current issue is the landlord is dragging their feet. This is the biggest thing I’ve ever done, do it is pretty top of mind for me.  Less so for them.  It has been pretty casual so far, but I need to get moving. 

I understand leases in general, but I am less educated on things like what is customary for each party to pay, particularly around the improvements and buildout and pricing escalators, etc. 

Oh, I should mention that the landlord has stated that she will not pay agent fees (she’s a bit eccentric). 

Thanks.
[{"id": "gklx9ll", "text": "Most brokers aren't interested in working 'a la carte' like this (just negotiating the lease) in my experience.", "replies": [{"id": "gknn0hw", "text": "Generally speaking brokers are solely focused on cashing commission checks. If they instead changed the focus to client service, they would have so much word-of-mouth business that they would never need to look for any.\n\nIn short, I agree that this sentiment is true, but it doesn\u2019t actually make good business sense. I\u2019m open to help here.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkm39nn", "text": "Dm'ed", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkmb3g7", "text": "I'm sure you can. Most won't though. And usually the ones that will aren't the best.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkmbk83", "text": "If you\u2019re confident on market pricing, consider hiring a lawyer just to negotiate", "replies": [{"id": "gkp3tv1", "text": "Market pricing *and* deal incentives being offered right now *and* typical delivery conditions/TI being offered by LLs at this rent for tenants with your signature (i.e. your creditworthiness). But... all of that is moot if you really like the location and the LL refuses to negotiate further or to pay a tenant rep broker. In that case, you just need to do a thoughtful analysis of your business and the gross operating margins that it affords you such that you can back into a maximum occupancy cost.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkmet9h", "text": "Yes you can,.if you can find one. I offer flat fee services in my state,  but its even less common in commercial vs residential. \n\nGood luck. \n\nAnother option is you can use an attorney to help you negotiate. They can review and explain everything in the lease for you, and help you decide what's important to counter. Any tenant onjabe seen that has any experience, even ones that dont all have attorney review the lease.", "replies": [{"id": "gkmxeg2", "text": "Yep - I was given a referral and hope to speak to them this week.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkmflpj", "text": "yes. He gets paid by the listing owner. In other words the realtor does it for free.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkmfp75", "text": "You get what you pay for and if you aren\u2019t willing to pay the full freight on a tenant rep brokers fee, expect to get a subpar service", "replies": [{"id": "gkmxfxk", "text": "Thanks, I was expecting that.", "replies": [{"id": "gknqpje", "text": "This is generally true but not always true. There are plenty of people that would offer to be a resource to you free of charge, just have to find the hungry broker in your market that\u2019s willing to burn an hour or two on you to generate future business and referrals.", "replies": [], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkmgwa6", "text": "As a broker, use an attorney. If you're the tenant the landlord is paying their commission and they won't like you if you're at lease and bring a broker in. Use an attorney, they will be better for you.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkmlv3k", "text": "If he/she's worth a damn then no, they won't do it.  Not worth their time, just hire an attorney...", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkmo9rj", "text": "Full disclosure: I\u2019m the COO/asset manager of a privately-held commercial real estate investment company, so I\u2019m basically a commercial Landlord. For a landlord to pay a tenant-rep broker, the tenant-rep broker would need to be the \u201cprocuring cause\u201d of the lease transaction. That would mean bringing the tenant prospect to the landlord.  Often, there\u2019s an exclusive representation agreement, but not always. In this case, you\u2019ve already negotiated directly with the landlord, so no landlord would pay your broker. You, of course can pay the broker yourself, but even then I would resist you bringing in a broker in the middle of the deal. Just my two cents. \n\nAlso, keep in mind that all landlords amortize costs into deals, and commissions is one of them. So, even if you pay a tenant-rep broker directly, it\u2019s not you didn\u2019t pay for it if you had one from the beginning who was paid by the landlord.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkn8n1f", "text": "Often a broker will help you on this one to possibly get a referral or help you secure your next location. Especially if it's a broker that you know in common with friends or neighbors in business. Is your use restaurant or straight retail? Anything that you put into the building that 'stays with the building' you should ask for back in free rent. Often they can't give it to you in the beginning (especially if they have a lot of vacancies) but the free rent can be spread thru the lease term. Other things to negociate are the maintence of the A/C &amp; roof. Make sure your lease does not leave you open to those expenses. Often when I see negotiations without brokers, tenants are just not clear --- get everything written out as clearly as possible so that the lease comes back representing exactly what you have agreed upon. Often it's not the owner drafting the lease, so really just need to clarify communication so they have the deal points for whomever is writing up the agreement. Goodluck.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkn98f1", "text": "Definitely get a commercial transactions lawyer. Brokers have some market color on terms and economics but lawyers will keep you from being screwed. Many commercially minded lawyers will have a sense for economics too.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gknmng8", "text": "I\u2019m an attorney with an MBA turned commercial real estate broker with nearly a decade of experience. I could help you for an hourly fee, but I wouldn\u2019t act as your attorney on the transaction.\n\nI would guide you as a best-in-class real estate advisor and would know much more about the business terms and structures to best protect your business and set you up for success. You should still use an attorney to negotiate your lease.\n\nI don\u2019t come cheap, because I charge $400 an hour if I\u2019m not part of the deal and earning a brokerage fee. A good landlord should pay a tenant rep broker, because it increases the pool of good tenants that would want to lease your space. Good tenants tend to use brokers because even if the tenant finds the space, the broker should have market knowledge and things like deal comps to provide as reference points.\n\nHappy to provide my LinkedIn profile but not sure of the rules around here. I represent a number of premium and/or well-known brands across the country and work nationally, not locally (I partner with local brokers for their local market expertise and share fees with them).", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gkntmwm", "text": "What type of space are you looking at? I think it matters a lot. Leasing a 50,000 SF industrial building vs. a 1,500 SF retail shop space vs. 5,000 SF of office are very different in their complexity. In my opinion, if it is industrial, you could likely just have an attorney to help you get through the lease process. If it is office or retail, I would highly recommend that you try to get a broker to represent you as they are much more likely to understand the terms of the market and could likely result in their services being \"free\" by getting you better terms than what you would have been able to get otherwise. You potentially will still need the help of an attorney to review the lease and make sure there aren't any significantly onerous terms, but I think a good broker frequently creates a lot more value than an attorney. Remember, I am a broker so you know my bias.", "replies": [{"id": "gkqarak", "text": "I think he posted in this group before and it's only 1k sf retail.", "replies": [], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}, {"id": "gko21j1", "text": "Definitely would get an attorney if you\u2019re adamant in representing yourself with the lease, although they won\u2019t be much help in negotiating details you brought up such as TI. As mentioned, finding a broker to represent you as a tenant would be most beneficial. An expert will likely even get you a better lease. \n\nThere\u2019s many moving pieces and you want someone on your team, who is well versed in the space. Nowadays with COVID you\u2019ll likely get the attention of brokers who\u2019d normally be more busy which means better service/quicker lease, worth reaching out. Just my two cents having represented tenants in the past. You may have very good reasons for not wanting to work with a broker (and I\u2019d love to hear them); I personally don\u2019t see any, and a landlord saying they won\u2019t pay the fee is definitely not one. That says more about the landlord. Best of luck \n\nTl;dr: You said you\u2019re lost. Navigating the CRE space can be tricky especially when you have a business to run. I\u2019d recommend hiring a broker ASAP.\n\nEdited to add: Once you have a relationship with a broker. I\u2019m sure they would be happy to negotiate a flat fee with you, if you wanted *this* property for certain that wasn\u2019t paying a fee. The qualified broker would feel more comfortable because you\u2019ve brought them on as an agent to your situation and established relationship making it worth their time, and your money.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}]