Why Market Data Separates the Best From the Rest

In my 29 years in the business, I’ve garnered some valuable insights. I think of having a strategic approach to brokerage as a secret sauce - one’s art form and a Spidey sense that develops over time. Lots of brokers have it. It’s based on duration in the business, deal experience, personal skill sets (intellectual strengths and weaknesses), and individual personalities. In this article, I wanted to share how market information, when coupled with deep deal experience, can create outcomes where 1 + 1 = 3. This is a long article so buckle in.

Collecting market data has never been easy. It’s time-consuming, expensive, and tedious. When held by one party and not their counterparty, market data can create massive power imbalances in a negotiation or transaction. There are haves and have-nots in the information game. It’s not just about what data you can find or see on the surface. Everything is relative. One piece of information is much more valuable and actionable when paired with another piece of information when you know how to create insights combining two (or more) seemingly unrelated pieces of information.

Market intel comes from everywhere: transaction records, public filings, marketing brochures, city planning websites, and a myriad of other sources; however, nothing replaces or comes close to the value of the information you can obtain from relationships and direct conversations with market participants. Conversations remain the #1 source of insider information - they just don’t scale. Unless you have a tight relationship with the person on the other end of the line, you have to offer value to extract the information you need. This usually means having your own information to share in return.

The brokers and investors who consistently maximize value are the ones who pull intel from multiple sources and combine it all into one clear picture. They’re able to spot trends early, identify opportunities further upstream, and uncover deals while others are still searching aimlessly. That ability translates directly into fuller pipelines, better decision-making, and ultimately, stronger performance.

So how do you find a way to amass valuable market data in a way that makes data collection automated, efficient, and most importantly, as actionable as possible? I will get into that later in this article. First, let’s dive into an example from my recent personal experience where having the right piece of information led to a great outcome.

Convenience Store Lease Extension: The Power of Conversations as Data

A client of mine called me asking for help. He had negotiated a lease extension with his tenant which still had many years remaining on the lease at the time. The tenant wanted to expand the store and secure an extended lease term to protect their investment. This store is an AAA+ location for this tenant. It sits a few blocks away from one of the largest family attractions in the world (I’ll let you guess what that is).

At the time of the negotiation of the amendment (in which I was not involved) the tenant was paying $132,000 / year in rent. The lease amendment negotiated by my client called for the tenant to expand the building by 950 square feet, a $150,000 landlord contribution, a 20 year term extension, and an increase in base rent to $184,000 / year.

It was a great deal for him. That was a $52,000 annual return on a $150,000 investment. You do that deal 100 times out of 100.

The only problem: when the tenant went to the City with their plans, they were asked to dedicate land for a right turn lane (the site is only 19,000 square feet so there’s not a lot of extra land to give away) and install new traffic signals at the intersection (this is a big intersection). The tenant was looking at over $4,000,000 in total project costs (for real). Obviously, that wasn’t going to fly.

So the tenant called my client to give him the bad news. My client then called me asking for my help. We held a call with the tenant where the tenant shared that they may have to just do a cosmetic remodel of the store because they weren’t willing to absorb the additional costs. I assured them we wanted to figure out how to make the deal work either way. I asked the tenant what their motivation was for this deal. The tenant then made a very costly mistake. They shared that the franchisee had just sold the store to a new operator. Bingo! That was the information I needed to swing our hammer.

After the call, I rang up my client and said “Did you hear what she said on that call? She gave us the keys to the kingdom.” My client hadn’t caught the slip-up and did not realize how valuable that piece of information was. I explained that the new buyer of the business absolutely paid a premium for the location because it is one of the best performing locations in the entire county. The buyer certainly relied on the amendment being in place and having a full 20 years of term plus options in making the decision to buy the business.

I looked back at the amendment. The outside date for the tenant’s contingencies had passed but the landlord had to notice the tenant to perform. If the tenant did not COMPLETE all the work contemplated under the agreement (finish the 950 square foot addition) within 60 days of the notice, the landlord could terminate the amendment. The existing lease (which at this time had two years remaining with just a single five year option after that) would be back in place unamended.

There was no way the tenant could perform even if they so desired. I knew that sending notice of termination of the amendment would create a massive issue for the tenant with their new franchisee. The new franchisee would be very unhappy to find out they just bought a business that actually only had 7 years of term remaining.

I called my client’s attorney and explained my strategy in order to get his blessing. He agreed that it was legally sound. I then called the tenant and explained that we had to take care of some housekeeping. We had a lease amendment that will never be factual because the tenant was not going to add the additional 950 square feet. I explained that in order to dot the i’s and cross the t’s we needed to send in a notice of termination of the amendment but that the notice was merely a formality. I wanted to prepare her for the notice and reassure her that we still wanted to work with her on a new extension. Had we sent the notice without warning, they would have freaked out and I didn’t want that.

Upon sending the notice to terminate the amendment, we were no longer tied to the $184,000 rent.

The tenant said they still wanted to do the remodel and extend the lease (of course they did - they had no choice). I called my client and he asked “What should I ask for in rent?” I said “The moon. You have them over a barrel……..and you aren’t giving a tenant improvement contribution anymore.” He asked “Do you think I can get $250,000?” I knew of an inferior site where this tenant had recently paid rent approaching this amount so I said “I’m not sure but you should definitely ask for that.”

The end result:

• New 20 year term extension
• $250,000 / year base rent ($8.68 PSF)
• Zero out-of-pocket tenant improvement contribution from the landlord
• Options at fair market rent but in no event less than 110% of previous rent
• No land dedication

Knowledge of the franchise sale changed everything. One small piece of information led to the tenant having to pay an additional $66,000 / year more than the initial amendment called for and created almost $1,500,000 in additional asset value (at a 4.50% CAP).

The Key Takeaway:

Information is EVERYTHING. It can come from anywhere. Listening intently and asking probing questions is a skillset that every broker must master in order to create outsized outcomes.

As discussed, in the opening paragraphs of this article, the methodologies for gathering valuable information are vast but scattered. The old ways don’t scale.

Most firms rely on analysts or research teams to handle this work, but much of it can now be automated. When data capture, organization, and unification happens in the background, professionals at every level - from first-year associates to grizzled brokers and investors - are able to spend their time creating leverage in their deal-making from the insights uncovered while their competition is wasting time searching for the right information in a non-scalable manner or on a one-off basis over and over and over.

Below are some common, but critical scenarios where having the right information can be leveraged into your competitive edge:

1. Owners Facing Lease Renewals and Rent Reduction Requests

When a tenant asks for a rent reduction or when a lease expiration is approaching, market data determines whether you can hold firm or whether you concede ground. Without knowing area lease comps, vacancy rates, and pending deals, you’re at a disadvantage. With the right intel, you can establish leverage and make decisions that maximize asset value.

2. Marketing a Property for Sale

When you take a property to market, buyers expect precision:

• Comparable sales and how they traded
• Current and projected rent levels
• New projects under construction or coming online

The deeper your market knowledge, the more credibility you build with both sellers and buyers. A broker who can quickly contextualize a property within its market isn’t just selling a listing - they’re positioning themselves as a trusted advisor. That trust creates long-term deal flow.

3. Investors Evaluating Risk and Opportunity

Investors rely on market intel to measure both upside and downside risk. Without it, you can’t answer the most important questions:

• What’s the rent growth trajectory in the trade area?
• How are trade area tenants performing?
• Are new residential developments driving more consumer traffic?
• Is a major employer planning to relocate, potentially cutting demand?
• Are there any public works projects planned for the future that could impact the asset?

These factors can mean the difference between steady cash flow and unexpected disruption. Data allows investors to anticipate shifts before they land on your doorstep. Analyzing as much information as possible is the best way to protect your investment.

4. Prospecting and Business Development

Prospecting is one of the most time-consuming aspects of the brokerage business. Strategic ideation, research, and outreach take significant time and effort, so the key is maximizing the ROI on every touchpoint.

The foundation of effective prospecting is good ownership, tenant, and asset-specific data. When you know exactly who to call, how to reach them, and what’s happening in their trade area, your conversations shift from generic pitches to value-driven discussions.

With market intel at your fingertips, you can speak confidently and immediately to an owner’s situation. Whether you’re a first-year associate or a 20-year veteran, having the right data in one place allows you to display authority and expertise in every conversation. Contrast that with fumbling between windows or asking for follow-up time. Owners will notice the difference between a call executed with precision and one without. Efficiency signals professionalism.

In prospecting, speed and accuracy create trust. The more seamless your access to market intel, the more effective your pipeline building becomes.

5. Tenant Representation

Tenant reps are tasked with identifying the best possible trade areas, specific sites, and negotiating terms that align with their clients’ long-term strategies. Without market intel, you’re just guessing.

Knowing which retailers are entering a market, what rents landlords are achieving, how competitors are performing, and what new developments are reshaping the landscape allow tenant reps to deliver real value. A client deciding between two locations will always rely on the rep who can ground recommendations in hard market data, not just intuition.

6. Lenders and Capital Markets

For lenders, market intel is the backbone of underwriting. Loan decisions hinge on confidence in a property’s income stream, tenant stability, and trade area fundamentals. Having robust data reduces risk on both sides of the table.

Capital markets teams lean on intel when pitching financing and structuring deals. Being able to frame risk accurately - supported by comps, vacancy data, and tenant creditworthiness - makes capital providers more likely to back a transaction.

Market Data as the Backbone of Execution

Market intel isn’t optional - it’s a pillar of performance for every player in commercial real estate. Everyone collects it, but the way you collect, manage, and activate it determines how much value you can extract to create actionable insights.

If you’re spending hours tracking down comps or keying numbers into spreadsheets, you’re operating at a disadvantage. High-level operators will utilize systems that capture intel in the background so they can focus on what moves the needle:

• Building relationships
• Spotting and uncovering opportunities before others
• Structuring better deals
• Advising clients with confidence

The professionals who master the balance of automating collection, centralizing access, and spending their time on analysis, relationships, and execution will consistently outperform the competition.

Because in this business, the one constant is change. The only way to maximize value in a shifting market is to have the data before you need it.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, every broker, investor, lender, and tenant needs to utilize an intelligent data system - one that automates collection, organizes information in a central command center, and makes it instantly accessible and actionable. The real advantage lies in having the best data at your fingertips the moment you need it, presented in a way that ignites unique and actionable insights. When market intel flows seamlessly into your workflow, you’re able to focus on what matters most: making informed decisions.

In today’s CRE landscape, information is capital. Wall Street has known this for decades. An information revolution is coming to commercial real estate and it is going to completely change the game.