When your business or financial future is on the line in a commercial purchase, you want to know that everyone has your best interests at heart. Unfortunately, many parties in a commercial transaction have other priorities during the sale, and you’ll want to remember whose interests come first when working with these groups. But who can you trust, and who may not have your best interest at heart in a commercial sale? We answer that question in today’s blog.
Who Has Your Best Interests At Heart?
We don’t want this blog to come off as other parties are out to get you during a commercial transaction, but the fact of the matter is that your interests are not at the top of everyone’s list when it comes to a commercial real estate sale. That’s not to say that you should never work with other parties, but you’ll want to be aware of their motivations so you don’t leave yourself exposed to unnecessary risk. With that said, let’s look at the trustworthiness of some of the parties you’ll work with during a commercial transaction.
-
The Seller - It would be lovely if you could trust the seller throughout the course of the sale, and for most buyers, working with a seller is smooth sailing. With that said, they definitely do not naturally have your best interests at heart. They likely want to maximize their profit from the sale and may be hoping they can rush through the process to move on from some pending liability. They also get to legally keep your earnest money in the event you cannot close on the deal, so don’t assume they’ll return that out of the goodness of their heart if your financing falls through or another issue develops. They care about their bottom line first, so don’t be surprised if they act accordingly throughout the sale.
-
The Real Estate Agent - Real estate agents intrinsically have different motivations than buyers and sellers. That said, they certainly have an interest in keeping a sale on track, which is something both the seller and buyer also wish.
-
Title Service Company – As your title service company, want the sale to go through, and to ensure that happens, we have to look out for some of the issues that could cause problems for the buyer. Things like failed inspections, cloudy titles or zoning issues are all concerns that will need to be addressed to keep a sale on track and prevent financial headaches for a buyer, and we want to help resolve those, which is certainly in the buyer’s best interests. We also serve as a neutral third party when it comes to holding escrow funds and dispersing them. You can trust that your funds will be held securely and paid out in a timely and appropriate manner if you need to pay the seller or contractors. Since we can also supply you with title insurance, we have a vested interest in uncovering all potential threats to your title so that we’re not financially liable if a claim is made on your property, so know that in this instance, our interest in protecting against title claims is aligned with yours.
At the end of the day, know that nobody shares your exact same interests in a commercial purchase, but your title services company certainly has more shared interests than other parties. We want to help keep your interests protected throughout the course of a sale, so bring us aboard and let us assist with your first or your next commercial purchase. For more information, reach out to the team at Commercial Partners today at (612) 337-2470.