Real Estate Advisor Law Blog : Ohio Real Estate Lawyer & Attorney : Ulmer & Berne Law Firm : Columbus, Cleveland OH

The ICSC Law Conference is being held this week in Phoenix. It alternates from the West  to the East each year - this year it's out West. It is a great conference for any attorney practicing in the retail real estate industry.  Here are the top 10 reasons for attending:

10.    There is a seminar on negotiating skills, which is really a seminar on how to listen - a skill we all need to improve.

9.    It is always at a beautiful resort.

8.    Arnold Golden Gregory has a party.  So Abe Schear is buying you drinks.

7.    There are seminars on insurance coverage in retail leases. I firmly believe that if you really understand how insurance and indemnity work together in a lease, you can win every issue.

6.    Easy way to socialize with clients.

5.   There is always a great featured speaker. Might be a nationally known celebrity, or an insightful national commentator.

4.    Most opposing attorneys will be there and so you can negotiate face to face on pending leases (while not being pressured to turn around a draft immediately since everyone understands you are at ICSC and thus unable to do so).

3.    You get CLE - lots of it.

2.    There are small interactive seminars where you will learn useful information.

1.    And the number one reason to attend is that you can meet in person opposing attorneys with whom you are doing leases.  It is then much harder for that attorney to be obnoxious and difficult after you have met them face to face. 

It really is the chance to meet people you are working with in person in a relaxed setting that is the biggest benefit.

Hope to see you there ! 

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As more workers and entrepreneurs are requiring space to hold meetings and appointments outside the company office, there is a growing need for locations away from homes in which to "plug in", make phone calls without the background music and noise of a Starbucks or other such cafe. The industry which addresses this need is referred to as the "co-working office space industry."

Two companies on the west coast are now meeting this need: NextSpace and Blankspaces. Both offer a table, chair, phone and Internet, coffee, conference rooms, private offices all for a daily, weekly or monthly fee. 

The benefits of "co-working office space" is that the working space is quieter, easy to plug in computers and cell phones, meet and collaborate with colleagues and clients. This is another way to take our over abundance of retail and suburban office space and adaptively reuse it. 

So, whether you are managing a work force and need space for them to operate from outside the company's offices or you are a property owner looking to turn empty space into income producing space, this is an idea worth considering!

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A recent off hand statement by a Landlord's attorney got me thinking. I was representing a national retailer in a lease negotiation. We got to an issue that sophisticated landlords typically ask for and most retailers typically concede.  Our client, however, does not typically concede the issue.  The issue has unique meaning for our client because of their specific line of business.  When I told Landlord’s attorney that we do not ever agree to it, his response was “Boy, I wish I was a tenant attorney these days.”

I then tried to explain to him that this was not a case of the Tenant trying to take advantage of a down market, or exploiting some perception of leverage. Rather, this retailer was different from other retailers when considering their product mix and customer base.  And so it was a special business issue, not trying to take advantage; and I meant it !

Taking advantage of a superior bargaining position is not always the best thing for anyone. If you take undue advantage, you can be sure the other side will remember it. Then, in the next deal where you may not have the advantage, issues that should be conceded in your favor may not get conceded. Or during the relationship you might find you need a favor or just cooperation.  If you have soured the relationship because of taking undue advantage, the other side may not be so quick to help out. 

So the point is to negotiate for what you really need.  Do not demand more than you need or refuse to give what you can.  Protect your client’s real concern.  Anything more may harm the client more than it helps.

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Vacancy rates are up; occupancy rates are down.  This spells opportunity for tenants and challenges for landlords.   The instinct which once prevailed in the real estate industry was to "go for the jugular" and cut the best deal you possibly can.  But real estate professionals know that today's "tenant market" will become tomorrow's "landlord market."  So, savvy real estate professionals are approaching the present  "soft" market with a creative approach which has the intention to make everyone a winner.  

Consider surplus space give backs; move-up to better space for the tenant with better terms for the landlord; percentage rent structured office leases for certain types of revenue generating space users (such as micro-office suites).  The options and opportunities are endless.   So, before you slit the throat of your adversary remember, what goes around comes around !

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