Strategic Real Estate Consultancy

Question 1

Can you give me some examples of real estate strategies?

Answer 1

• Benchmarking exercises
• Cost saving initiatives
• Transaction management
• Opportunity assessments
• Critical dates management
• Long term strategic planning
• Regular portfolio reviews
• Regearing leases early
• Subletting or disposing of additional space
• Relocation based on business need

Question 2

How do real estate strategies help business performance

Answer 2

• Helps to ensure the real estate supports business functions
• Improves employee satisfaction
• Helps to improve revenue

Question 3

How might you measure the impact of real estate strategies on business performance?

Answer 3

• Profit
• Employee satisfaction/retention - employee surveys etc

Question 4

Why is it important for real estate to align with wider business strategies?

Answer 4

Supports revenue and growth targets

Question 5

What different stakeholders might you deal with?

Answer 5

• Corporate Real Estate team
• CFO
• Local business leadership

Question 6

Can you explain a corporate real estate strategy you developed?

Answer 6

• Quarterly portfolio reviews
• Benchmarking passing rents against market rents (liaising with local brokers)

Question 7

You’ve worked on projects in different countries, were you qualified to do this?

Answer 7

Whilst working on transactions in other countries, I liaised with local agents with market expertise to advise me and provide recommendations

Question 8

How do you get under the skin of understanding stakeholder interviews?

Answer 8

• Regular stakeholder engagement
• Identify business’ short and long term business objectives
• Keeping abreast of changes to the business, market operated in and generally being commercially aware

Question 9

What are the benefits of undertaking stakeholder interviews?

Answer 9

• Helps to establish business requirements and preferences
• Keeps the client up-to-date with progress of projects and can receive input straight away

Question 10

How would you say an external consultant can add value?

Answer 10

• Maintain a consistent relationship with the client
• Support a client team that may not have a Real Estate background
• Provide a holistic approach when supporting in regional portfolio strategies
• Can provide expertise

Question 11

How can real estate efficiency be measured?

Answer 11

• Building utilitisation rates
• Costs per unit
• Benchmarking

Question 12

Can you give me an overview of a typical organisation’s real estate strategy?

Answer 12

• The real estate strategy is aligned to main business objectives
• To improve operational efficiencies and enhance the financial position of the business
• Cost saving initiatives to enhance financial position

Question 13

What is the biggest cost to a business?

Answer 13

• Staff
• Real estate
• Goods and products

Question 14

When acting in an advisory capacity for a corporate client, what type of data might you analyse in order to
develop an appropriate strategy?

Answer 14

• Lease events / critical dates – expiries, break options, renewals
• No. of freeholds/leaseholds
• Locations
• Types of premises
• Costs
• Area
• Headcount

Question 15

Can you give me an example of a time you have used your knowledge of real estate to devise a solution to a
client’s requirement?

Answer 15

• Conducted a surrender vs disposal for my client
• Occupied an industrial unit in Birmingham and no longer required the space
• Were deciding between surrendering the lease or disposing of the space entirely
• Presented an opportunity assessment in excel highlighting and comparing the costs to surrender v dispose

Question 16

What are the benefits of a lease regear?

Answer 16

• Security for LL – extended term and income
• Security for TT – greater flexibility, lower rent costs or improved lease terms
• Provides the tenant with additional rent free
• Increases the value of an investment – longer income
• Mitigates voids and associated costs e.g. empty rates, service charge, letting fees, etc.

Question 17

Can you provide an example of a time you have delivered advice on site selection?

Answer 17

• Client needed to relocate offices in Lagos as they had a lease expiry in Sept 2023
• I spoke with the client to understand their requirements and objectives – 6,000 sq ft, CAT A or fitted, near VI or Ikoyi, parking, back up generator
• I instructed a 3rd party broker to represent the occupier in negotiations
• Once I had received a longlist of available units, I created a shortlist and recommended the properties that best suited my client with clear rationale
• Result – the local team viewed the properties and we were able to identify a suitable property that met the client’s needs and tests fits were provided to the occupier to review

Question 18

Can you describe a time when you worked with a client to help them achieve their strategic objectives?

Answer 18

• The client wanted to make cost savings across their EMEA portfolio
• I undertook an analysis of the rents paid in the top 10 sites of the portfolio
• I cross checked the passing rents with the market rents as provided by local market experts
• I then used to information to prepare a spreadsheet on excel. I highlighted the top 10 overrented properties and advised the client on regear and relocation opportunities
• I presented the findings to key stakeholders outlining the immediate financial benefits
• Following this, the client was able to regear leases in several locations and negotiate better terms – extending terms and reducing overall costs