Why Use A Commercial Real Estate Broker

The Assumptions

At first glance, using a commercial real estate broker can feel optional. Many companies have renewed leases before. Some have long-standing relationships with their landlords. Others already believe they know the outcome before the process begins.

We hear it all the time:

• We've done this before, do we really need to hire a broker?

• Is it worth the hassle if we plan to renew anyway?

• Will bringing in a broker make the deal more expensive?
  
  

These are reasonable assumptions. They are also where many tenants quietly surrender leverage and protections before negotiations even begin.

Commercial real estate decisions rarely go wrong because of bad intentions. They go wrong because decisions are made with incomplete information, misaligned incentives, and limited visibility into the broader market.

That is where a tenant-only advisor changes the outcome.

The Role

A broker is often seen as a middleman. In reality, the value of tenant representation lies far beyond the transaction itself.

At Cresa, we intentionally refer to ourselves as advisors, not just brokers. We don’t simply facilitate transactions. We manage the analysis, strategy, and negotiations that materially shape cost, flexibility, and long-term growth.

Real estate is the tool. Business objectives are the priority.

Unlike traditional brokerage models, Cresa is the largest occupier-only firm where we lead the process from start to finish with your best interests in mind. That separation matters. It removes conflicts of interest and ensures that every recommendation is made with one objective in mind: what best serves our client.

The Leverage

One of the most persistent misconceptions in commercial real estate is that broker representation increases costs.

Landlords already account for brokerage fees in their economics, whether or not a tenant is represented.

When a tenant is advised, the landlord knows alternatives are being evaluated seriously. Market options are benchmarked against real local transaction data. Competing proposals are pressure-tested. That competitive environment forces clarity and sharpens terms, without adding any direct cost to the tenant.

At the same time, we manage the time-intensive work that often distracts leadership teams: defining requirements, evaluating locations, modeling costs, and eliminating options that do not truly fit operational or financial needs.

The result is not just efficiency, but better decisions made with confidence. This type of leverage is not requested. It is created.

The Protection

Lease documents are complex by design and often tilt toward the landlord. Operating expenses, renewal language, relocation rights, termination options, and construction responsibilities can materially affect long-term cost and flexibility.

Our role is not simply to reach agreement, but to safeguard the tenant throughout the entire negotiation process by anticipating and resolving lease pitfalls before they happen. The goal is not just a signed lease, but a structure that protects the business throughout the entire term of occupancy.

Whether a company ultimately renews, relocates, expands, or stays put, tenant representation ensures the decision was tested against the market and negotiated on informed terms.

Strong tenant representation delivers structured negotiations that reduce total occupancy cost without adding any direct cost to the tenant.

More importantly, it brings clarity, discipline, and alignment between real estate decisions and broader business goals.

That is the difference between completing a transaction and being advised through one.