Top-five tips to divest unneeded corporate real estate (Part 2)

2. Every time you conduct a sale or lease, you have to do your homework up front.

It’s far better to address any issues at the start of a process, rather than wait for them to be uncovered on the day of the deal. You have to truly understand all property and lease issues that the typical buyer will need to evaluate the property – the structure, environmental issues, utilities, access, subletting issues etc. This information, firstly, allows the corporation to make an educated decision of whether they really are prepared to dispose of the space before going to market and, secondly, if they do go to market the data allows the buyer to make a quick decision in the first instance on whether the site works for them or not.

Providing all prospects with information on potential issues up front keeps the focus on those buyers that are suited to the property. It also minimizes the buyer’s ability to later lower their offered price by claiming that that a particular issue was previously unknown. This process of full information and disclosure maximizes probability for success and maximum value for the site.