Technical guides to commercial real estate lending, valuation, leasing, and licensing, written for the brokers, underwriters, and analysts who work the deals.
27 articles
The seller or landlord usually pays a commercial real estate commission. See how brokers split it, when it is earned, broker lien laws and BLS price data.
How to buy commercial real estate step by step: what each document commits you to, the transfer tax on a $5 million building, and GST or HST in Canada.
What commercial real estate brokers do: pricing, marketing and negotiating sales and leases, how a tenant rep compares offers, how agents differ from brokers.
How to value commercial real estate: rebuild NOI, test highest and best use, deduct lease-up costs and loss to lease, then check replacement cost and taxes.
How to get into commercial real estate: pick a path, take an entry-level job under a senior pro and see how long Texas, California, Ontario and Alberta take.
An estoppel certificate is a tenant's signed statement of its lease for a buyer or lender. See what it confirms, when buyers require it and what to check first.
Absorption in commercial real estate is the change in occupied space over a period. See how to calculate net absorption, the absorption rate and lease-up.
A commercial bridge loan carries a building for up to three years until it can be sold or refinanced. See how lenders size it, price it and test the exit.
A PSA is the purchase and sale agreement that binds a commercial property sale. See its key clauses, when the deposit goes hard and what tax a buyer withholds.
A shell space is commercial space with no interior finish, which the tenant builds out. Compare cold, warm and vanilla shells, turnkey and build-to-suit space.
TI in commercial real estate means tenant improvements, the work that fits a space to a tenant. See how a TI allowance works, who pays and how it is taxed.
Flex space in commercial real estate is an industrial building that mixes office and warehouse space. See the office share, the uses and loan occupancy rules.
A gross lease in commercial real estate charges one rent that covers the building's costs. See full service and modified gross leases, base years and the math.
An LOI is a letter of intent: the short document that sets a commercial lease or sale's main terms before the contract. See what it includes and what binds.
An OM is an offering memorandum: the package a seller's broker sends buyers of a commercial property. See what it contains and how to test its pro forma NOI.
NNN in commercial real estate means triple net: the tenant pays base rent plus property taxes, insurance and maintenance. See the costs, the math and the risks.
CAM in commercial real estate is common area maintenance: a tenant's share of a property's shared costs. See how CAM charges, reconciliation and caps work.
A cap rate is a commercial property's net operating income divided by its price. See what a high or low rate means, the Fed's 2026 data and how lenders use it.
Commercial real estate glossary: 56 terms grouped by listing, lease, value and loan, from cap rate and NOI to NNN, CAM, DSCR and SNDA, with one worked example.
Commercial real estate market cycles explained: the four phases, what interest rates do to value and loans, where lending stands in 2026 and how to find deals.
Commercial real estate lending explained: how the loans work, how lenders size them with LTV, DSCR and debt yield, what sets the rate and how to qualify.
Commercial real estate investing explained: the ways to invest, what a loan does to your return, how to buy and sell a building, and US and Canadian tax rules.
Commercial real estate leasing explained: gross, modified gross and NNN leases, how rent and CAM are calculated, rent increases, and what lenders check.
How commercial real estate brokerage works: who a broker represents, who pays the commission, the dual agency rules in Texas, Ontario and Quebec, and GSA data.
Commercial real estate careers span brokerage, appraisal, lending and property management. See the licence each needs, the May 2025 pay and how Quebec differs.
Commercial real estate valuation uses three approaches, and cap rates drive most of the answer. See one building valued three ways and when an appraisal is due.
Commercial real estate is property valued on the income it produces. See the unit threshold, the asset classes, and how lenders price and size a loan.