To say 2020 was a challenging year for the sale of investment industrial property is an understatement. Despite record low interest rates, COVID constrictions on business and an uncertain future made the purchase of almost any industrial building feel risky.
Jim Porth and Michelle Grobler of the Thomas Duke Company were asked to represent the seller of a well-maintained, 11,000-square-foot building on Varsity Drive in Pittsfield Township. The building’s occupants were long-term tenants committed to the location. Cash flow was stable, with minimal risk.
And yet, in a year battered by a global pandemic, even the sale of a stable building like this had its challenges. One buyer backed out. Another was reluctant to proceed when the pandemic began shuttering businesses.
By staying with a sound marketing strategy, Jim and Michelle nevertheless generated multiple offers for the property and identified a local investor who saw the building’s assets.
Even then, getting to the closing table was not a slam-dunk. The Thomas Duke brokers needed to work painstakingly with a broker from another firm to extend the lease agreement of one of the tenants. The rather unusual terms of the lease agreement that they negotiated complicated closing costs. Jim and Michelle stayed with it though, diligently working out all the wrinkles so that at signing, everyone walked away satisfied.
In any market climate, you need brokers who will not let their commitment to you falter, no matter the circumstances. Brokers who see challenges as opportunities – for you. Jim Porth and Michelle Grobler at the Thomas Duke Company are those brokers. Call them today.
