Don't dabble.
Partner up.
You built the relationship. When a client asks about a building, a lease or land, partner with a team that has done commercial in Austin. Your client is served, you stay in the loop and you get paid at closing.
- Your past client just asked you to help them buy a building for their business.
- A buyer wants a fourplex, a strip center or ten acres, and the questions are getting technical.
- You've thought about adding commercial to your business but don't want to learn on a client's deal.
- You've watched a commercial deal die, or watched a client go to someone else for it.
- You want to say yes to every client without putting your reputation at risk.
Commercial is a
different business.
Different forms
Texas REALTORS commercial forms, not the TREC residential contracts: the TXR 1803 letter of intent, TXR 1801 and 1802 contracts and the TXR 2101 commercial lease. Every blank is negotiated.
Underwriting
Value comes from net operating income, rent rolls and cap rates. A missed expense or a weak lease can move the price by six figures.
Leases and NNN
Who pays taxes, insurance and maintenance, how expenses are reconciled, renewal options and early outs. The lease often is the deal.
Zoning and entitlements
What the property can legally be used for, and what it would take to change it. Austin's code has been changing fast.
Due diligence
Survey, title, environmental (often a Phase I), floodplain, estoppels and financials, all inside a feasibility period you negotiated.
Longer timelines
Months, not weeks. More parties, more approvals and more points where a deal can stall.
Different lenders
Commercial loans weigh the property's income, often ask for more down and have their own appraisals and conditions.
Liability and E&O
A mistake on a commercial deal can be expensive. Check your brokerage's policies and your E&O coverage before you go it alone.
Your client's trust
They came to you because they trust you. A bad commercial experience can cost you the next residential deal too.
It's rarely
one big thing.
Commercial deals usually die from a stack of small misses: an LOI that left out the feasibility terms, a lease nobody read to the end, a lender who wanted more income than the property shows, a zoning use that doesn't fit, a survey or environmental issue found too late.
Experience is knowing where to look before those show up. It's also knowing the people on the other side of the table and how they like to work.
The Texas layer. Sale prices aren't public here, so commercial comps take MLS access, relationships and history. Appraisal districts revalue every year. Austin's development rules and floodplain maps keep changing. A client who hears that from someone who has lived it trusts the advice.
Don't hand it off
for nothing.
When a commercial request lands on your desk, there are usually three outcomes. You try it alone and hope. The client goes somewhere else and you're out of the deal. Or you refer it or co-broker it with an experienced team, your client gets the help they need and you are paid at closing.
Commercial transactions often carry larger commissions than a typical home sale, so the referral or co-broke share can be meaningful. Losing it, or losing the deal, is money left on the table.
Sale price: $2,000,000
Total commission, if agreed at 3%: $60,000
Referral fee, if the brokers agree in writing to 25%: $15,000 paid to your sponsoring broker, then split with you under your agreement with them
Commissions and referral fees are negotiable and set in writing for each deal.
Simple steps.
In writing.
You make the intro
Tell us about the client and what they need. A quick email or DM is plenty.
We put it in writing
A referral or co-broke agreement between our brokerages before any work starts, with the fee and roles spelled out.
We do the commercial work
Search, underwriting, LOI, contract, due diligence and negotiation. You stay copied on the big moments.
You keep the client
They stay your client for everything else, and the agreed fee is paid through the brokers at closing.
Paid the right way.
In Texas, a sales agent can only receive compensation through their sponsoring broker and can only pay compensation through that broker, and a referral fee can only go to a licensed person. So every referral fee or co-broke here is paid broker to broker, under a written agreement, at closing. Nothing is paid to unlicensed people, and nothing is paid agent to agent directly.
We never promise a specific dollar amount or percentage on this page. Every fee is negotiated between the brokerages for that deal and put in writing. If you have questions about your own brokerage's rules, ask your broker.
You don't have to
be at eXp.
We work with agents at any brokerage. If you're with eXp, great. If you're not, the steps are the same: a written agreement between our brokerages, your client served well and your relationship protected.
I've been on both sides of this. I helped lead a commercial real estate business in Austin, and I spent years as an investor buying and renovating homes. I know how much is riding on a commercial deal, for your client and for you, and how much it matters to have someone on it who has been there before.
If your client trusts you, I'll treat them like they're my own, and I'll make sure you look good for bringing me in. Send me a note. Let's talk about it.
Les McDaniel | Eterne Real Estate Group, eXp Realty in Central Texas
Will you take my client?+
No. You made the introduction and you keep the relationship. We handle the commercial deal and send them back to you for everything else.
Can I stay involved and learn?+
Yes. Many agents want to co-broker and learn the process. We'll set your role in writing and keep you in the loop.
What kinds of deals do you take?+
Retail, office, industrial and flex, land, net-leased property and small multifamily, for buyers, sellers, landlords and tenants across Central Texas.
How much is the referral fee?+
It depends on the deal, and it's agreed in writing between our brokerages before work starts. We don't publish a standard rate.
What if the deal doesn't close?+
Referral fees are paid at closing, so if a deal doesn't close, no fee is paid. We'll tell you honestly if a deal doesn't look like it will work.
Bring us
the deal.
Email les@eternerealty.com or send a DM with a few lines about your client. We'll reply with next steps and a referral agreement.