Commercial Real Estate Cold Call Script

Opener

[First name], it's [your name] at [brokerage]. I'm a commercial broker, so you know what this is. I'm not calling to ask if you'd sell. I'm calling because [specific transaction] just closed on [street], and I thought you'd want the number before you hear it second-hand. Have you got 30 seconds?

Owners expect 'would you consider selling'. Replacing it with a comparable they have not heard yet turns the call into market intelligence and makes you worth listening to.

Reason for the call

[Address] traded at [price per square foot / cap rate] last [month], which is [above / below] where I'd have put it. Your building at [address] is a similar vintage with a [better / comparable] tenant roster, and it made me want to know how you're thinking about it: hold, refinance, or something else.

The comparable proves you track their submarket. The three-option question is open enough that owners will answer it, because none of the options is 'sell to my client'.

Value hook

What I do for owners in [submarket] is simple: I keep them in front of every trade and every lease that affects their value, and when the timing is right, I'm the one who already knows the building. I'm not asking for a listing. I'd like to be the broker you call when you want a real number, and that starts with me earning it.

Long game, said plainly. Commercial owners sell once a decade; the broker who positions as the source of market data gets the call when they do.

Qualifying question

Can I ask how long you've owned it, and whether there's a loan maturity or a major lease rollover coming up in the next two years? Those are usually the moments when owners want to know where they stand.

Loan maturities and lease expirations are the two events that force a decision. Asking about them identifies the owners who will transact within 24 months.

Handling the first pushback

That's fine, and most of the owners I work with weren't selling when we first spoke either. I'm not going to call you every month asking if you've changed your mind. Would it be useful if I sent you a quarterly note on trades in [submarket] and called only when something materially changes? If that's annoying, say so and I'll stop.

The pushback is 'not selling'. Converting the relationship to a low-frequency information feed with an explicit opt-out keeps you in the owner's world without being another nuisance.

Close

I'd like to walk the building with you at some point and give you an honest opinion of value, including what I think a buyer would pick at. That's a 45-minute visit, no listing agreement, no follow-up unless you want it. Are you at the property on [day], or would the week after suit better?

An opinion of value is the real first transaction in CRE. Naming the risk ('what a buyer would pick at') is what makes the owner believe it will be honest.

"I am not selling."

I believe you, and most owners I call aren't. That's not what I'm asking. I'm offering to keep you current on what's trading around you so that if you ever refinance, sell or face a lease rollover, you have the numbers in hand. If that's not useful, tell me and I'll take you off my list.

"We have a broker we have used for years."

Good, long relationships are worth something in this business. The one thing I'd ask is: when did they last send you a comp or a lease trade in your submarket without you asking? If they're doing that, you're well served. If they only call when they want a listing, I'd like a chance to be more useful than that.

"Our lease has 18 months left; call me in a year."

I understand why it feels early, but 18 months is actually when the clock starts. If you end up relocating, build-out alone can take six to nine months, and your landlord knows your timeline better than you do. A conversation now gives you leverage on the renewal even if you never move. Could I take 20 minutes to walk you through the options?

"What is your commission?"

On a tenant representation assignment, you don't pay me; the landlord pays the fee out of the deal, the same way they'd pay their own broker. On a sale, it depends on the asset and we'd agree it before anything is signed. Either way, nothing is owed for the conversation I'm asking for.