Question

Topic: Advertising/PR

I Need To Move Some Land Now! Help Needed!

Posted by joshuacrumbaugh on 4/25/2008 at 9:50 AM ET 750 Points
Hello,

I was recently put in charge of assisting the CEO of our company in selling a key piece of property, upon completion of the packaging a buyer who had expressed an interest nearly a year ago decided he wanted to beging to move forward. If this buyer purchases the property I don't get a commission because I didn't bring him to the table. I've now got approximately 2 weeks before he comes back with his answer and I would like to get an offer on the table during this time. I've sent complete opportunity overview packets to all of the top developers in my surrounding area, put the word out to some friends who are local entrepreneurs and offered anyone who can assist me in getting a contract on the table 30% of the total commission or approximately $75,000 for a refferral that turns out. What additional advise does anyone have to start bringing in leads more quickly?

Here is a brief description of the property.

This site is 158 acres, has 1250 linear feet of road frontage on Huntsville Brownsferry Road as
well as an additional 1000 linear feet of road frontage on Newby Road. This property just had
a million dollar sewer line run through the middle of the property from HSV Brownsferry to
Newby Road. The price is $4.5M ($27.6K) per acre, but the seller is motivated so I am able to
make deals happen. This property is located in the center of two major growth regions: Eastern
Limestone County and Madison City. Housing values have continued to increase throughout
this credit crunch and mortgage crisis, jobs are coming to the area at a rate not seen since the
mid 60’s and the Huntsville Metropolitan areas are experiencing a large majority of this regions
growth.
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by joshuacrumbaugh on 4/25/2008 at 11:08 AM Author
    That is on my agenda for Monday when they receive thier packages. By the way we have had 3 one billion dollar developments come into this immediate area over the past 1.5 years, and over 4000 new jobs.
  • Posted by jcasalou on 4/25/2008 at 11:19 AM Accepted
    I agree with Robert...

    I would see what major metropolitan city is located by the property and see if they have a Crain's business circulation. You can find a lot of developers and GC's in their classified section on occasion.

    Also, look in local papers that might have classifieds for commercial property wanted.

    Another place that might help is the Blacks Guide. They are a publication that deals with industrial and business parks. You might be able to find a business/industrial park in your area and it will list who owns it. Then you contact them and see if they're interested in buying land.

    You should be able to go to the surrounding city websites and they might have listing for new construction projects going on in their city. This is another way to find GC's.

    Hope this helps...



  • Posted by joshuacrumbaugh on 4/25/2008 at 11:25 AM Author
    Unfortunately I have been asked not to solicit developers from our local area due to the fact that this land is owned by the CEO of our company who deals with all of the largest developers in our area on a daily basis. For some reason he doesn't want them targeted. Fortunately I have Birminham, Atlanta, and Nashville all within a few hours drive.
  • Posted by Levon on 4/25/2008 at 12:50 PM Accepted
    Who says you have to reveal the owner of the property's name until an actual serious enquiry is made? Couldn't you just list the property much in the same way a Real Estate agent lists a property. It's all marketing really -Reveal what you want and don't reveal what you want equally.
  • Posted by joshuacrumbaugh on 4/25/2008 at 1:18 PM Author
    I've got other people doing that for me so they can get the referral money. You have to be careful when the person you're assisting is your direct boss. So, I've put distance in between myself and the people that aren't supposed to be being targeted, but great point.

    Ethical Question?
    If I have information that would get rid of the buyer who was brought in by the realtor and sell the property at the same time, but the information was given in confidence from someone who has already said that they haven't signed any NDAs protecting the information, would it be horribly unethical to use that information to close this deal?
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 4/25/2008 at 1:45 PM Accepted
    You're looking to find someone who'll produce $4.5M within 2 weeks? If I was interested in buying the property, it would take me weeks of due diligence to figure out if the price is good, the zoning adequate, etc.

    However, if someone is already looking in your area and wasn't aware of this property, then you have a more likely candidate, since they know about the comparative parcels, the area, etc. Talk to the Chamber of Commerce - have their been inquiries from out-of-state corporations looking to open a new office? Talk to local bankers - are there companies opening up new business accounts and trying to set up some physical presence in your area? Talk to your local city/county planners - who have talked to them recently about identifying areas?
  • Posted by joshuacrumbaugh on 4/25/2008 at 3:19 PM Author
    Jay,

    I don't actually have to close the deal in 2 weeks. I just need to get a serious buyer to the table in that amount of time. I appreiciate your advise and will definately take some of the steps you reccomended.

    Thank you,
    Joshua D. Crumbaugh
  • Posted on 4/27/2008 at 1:26 PM Accepted
    Analyze who the ideal customer would be. What purpose would they buy it? Create a list of those targets and contact them.

    Have you listed it on Loopnet.com? It is the commercial real estate version of a multiple listing service. Also ebay and yahoo do well and increase your exposure.

    Since you are offering a finders fee etc. Make a mailing or contact all the commercial RE brokers in your area to make them aware, consider raising the % slightly. Zero % of nuthin is nuthin.
  • Posted by Jessica_Castro on 4/28/2008 at 3:42 PM Accepted
    Since no one has addressed your ethical question, I will.

    As far as divulging information that isn't supposed to be discussed, yes I would consider it unethical. However; in the world of business ethics are sometimes skewed and decisions aren’t black and white. You have to ask yourself is it more unethical to divulge the information or allow someone who isn't supposed to purchase the land purchase it...

    Also consider if the person who gave the information would be able to find out that you "tattled". If so I would seriously think about whether or not they may be able to give you more useful information in the future. If you tell the “secret” they certainly won't be so apt to tell you another one.
  • Posted by joshuacrumbaugh on 4/28/2008 at 4:11 PM Author
    Everyone thank you for your answers it has helped significantly and I am now sitting on nearly twice the leads I would have been at this point. Lieca, I appreciate your advise on the ethical side of things. I have made the decision to hold off of using this information at this time; the person who gave me the information was, to my amazement, on board with me using it to drive the sale.
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