Signs of Demand

Finally there seems to be some indication that buyers and tenants are back in the marketplace. This is evidenced by the great month of May that my peers at Grubb & Ellis Company, Ontario and I just had, closing over 50 deals in 30 days. Needless to say we have not seen that kind of activity in many, many months. This certainly does not mean that the market is rebounding, in fact a lot of these deals took place at numbers that set a new low comp, but these comps help establish a realistic value that has been so hard to determine (or for many, just admit.)

Smart business owners will recognize that the next 6-18 months may represent one of the best opportunities in commercial real estate in years, especially as if activity continues at all like this.

Three New Listings

In the past two weeks I have been fortunate enough to secure three new exclusive listing agreements. Detailed information is availble by clicking the link at the top of this page.
Here is a little information on each:

7240 Sycamore Canyon Blvd., Riverside.
34,573 square feet
1,500 square feet of offices
4 ground level loading doors
2 dock high doors possible
24' clear height
400 amp power
This building is visible from the 215 freeway and is ideal for manufacturing, warehousing or retail. In fact many of the neighboring properties are furniture stores. This is a brand new, never been occupied building.
This property is offerd for lease at a teaser rate of $.25 per square foot gross.

1087 E. 9th St., San Bernardino
25,400 square feet in two buildings
Building 1:
13,400 square foot block and metal building
1,500 square feet of offices
12' clear height
5 ground level loading doors
200 amp power
Building 2:
12,000 square foot metal building
14' clear height
5 ground level loading doors
200 amp power
Total lot size is +/- 66,211 square feet
This is pretty low end manufacturing space. The current owner makes camper shells there.
The asking sale price is only $38.50 per square foot or $977,900.00

14762 Central Ave., Chino
6,140 square feet
500 square feet of offices
16' clear height
2 12'x14' ground level loading doors
200 amp 277/240 volt power
Fenced yard.
This is a nice small free-standing building with great frontage on Central Ave.
This building is available for lease at $.55 per square foot Gross
This is a sub-lease through August 31, 2012

These new listing should keep me busy for a little while!

A Taller Building Could Save You Money

Yesterday Richard Schwartz and I met with a large 3PL to discuss helping them consolidate. This company is currently in two buildings totalling about 650,000 square feet. These are older buildings that are only 24' clear. Their hope is to consolidate their operation into one  450,000 - 500,000 square foot, 30' clear building. As we all know, you pay for industrial property by the square foot, not the cubic foot. A 30' clear building could allow you rack 1 pallet position higher, thereby taking advantage of the cubic space that a building offers. Many times a 30' clear building will go for the same rate as a 24' clear building. For some it makes perfect sense. In this instance this company may be able to reduce their overall square footage by as much as 150,000 square feet, but still be able to maintain about the same amount of pallet positions. Let's say that 150,000 square feet is worth $.30 per square foot. That is a monthly savings of $45,000 or a savings of $2,700,000 over five years!

If you would like to do a cost analysis of your low clear building versus a taller building just let me know!

Mitch 909-974-4054

Networking with a 3PL

Today I received a call from Don Armstrong, the Director of Marketing for Third Party Logistics (3PL) providor NAL Syncreon. NAL is based out of Chicago, IL but maintains a +/- 155,000 square foot facility in Fontana, CA Like a lot of us right now NAL's business is down a little and about half of their Fontana facility is sitting empty. Knowing that sometimes a broker like myself might come across a company that prefers to distribute via a 3PL as opposed to doing it themselves Don gave me a call. Our conversation really made me think. For some companies a 3PL could really be the way to go, allowing you to focus more attention on designing, marketing and producing your product and less time being a shipping and distribution company. 3PL rates depend a lot on how many different times they have to handle your product but most will custom tailor a program specifically for you. If you're interested in speaking with Don contact me for his information.

Two New Transactions to Report

Last week I completed two different transactions.
The first, which is the top building shown on the right was a 10,000 square foot lease deal in Ontario. I represented the tenant, Mark Robinson of Performance Water Jet, Inc. Mark responded to one of my e-mail blasts and got an absolutely smoking deal on this property. Special thanks to Stefan Smith of Dale Fowler Real Estate who represented the Owner.

The second deal was a 8,750 square foot sale deal in San Jacinto. This property was a formal equipment rental yard and featured 4 roll up doors, a wash bay and a 2.2 acre fenced yard. This property was a Citibank foreclosure. Buyer Dale Dondel is a local off road race car builder. My partner Bob Griffith and I represented Citibank while I also represented the buyer.

Call me for the comp on either of these deals at 909-974-4054

Back From Vacation

Yes, I took a vacation. I really don't take many. Usually I just take a Friday off to make a long weekend. But this time I took a few extra days, and you know what? It was really nice. I didn't go anywhere fancy, just camping at Lake Buena Vista out near Bakersfield. Going to Buena Vista on Mother's Day weekend has been a family tradition of my wife's for years and it has now become a tradition for my family as well. Taking a little break from work to spend quality time with your family and friends can really help you put your life and priorities in perspective if you let it. After all, what are you working for? What motivates you and inspires you to do better, or to be a better person or to accomplish a goal that you have set? For me, it is my family. Nothing makes me happier than knowing that they are happy and well taken care of.

So the next time you have the opportunity to take an extra day or two off to be with the ones you love, I say do it! They will love you for it, and work can wait!

The Other Inland Empire

It turns out there is another Inland Empire. I found it on google just like I find most everything it seems. This one is up near Spokane, WA I found a couple of companies up there and added them to my e-mail list. Last October one of them responded to a quarterly market report that I had sent out. They asked if I had one for the Seattle market as they were thinking of expanding there. The company I work for, Grubb & Ellis has over 100 offices nationwide. Reports on almost every major market in the country are available on our company website http://www.grubb-ellis.com/  Today, that company contacted me again saying they were starting to look in the Seattle area for 50,000 - 100,000 square feet. I went to my Manager Dave Burback who knew right who to call in Seattle and before you know it I was sending out a great referral.