7 Easy-to-Use Tools for New CRE Investors
Specializes in providing actionable insights into the commercial real estate space for investors, brokers, lessors, and lessees. He covers quarterly market data reports, investment strategies, how-to guides, and top-down perspectives on market movements.
The commercial real estate industry is a vast place where subject matter expertise takes time. However, deals are truly the best teacher. Each and every transaction teaches all parties a little more, and a little more, and a little more after that.
Yet you can’t hit the ground running without making sure that you’re getting your technical tools in order. The CRE world becomes more and more technical every single day, and it’s important to know what tools to use as a newcomer.
Good tools address very specific needs within the investing world, such as scheduling, deal analysis, and commercial real estate locator services.
The list below reflects 7 of the most easy-to-use tools for newcomers to the great world of commercial real estate.
#1 – BLDUP
This tool has a free version, which is nice when you’re just starting out as a new investor. BLDUP allows you to get market data across a wide range of locales, as well as build on hunting for leads. The next deal you build could only be a few clicks away, and BLDUP can help you get there.
#2 – Calendly
Have you ever had to send a bunch of emails back and forth just to work out a time for multiple parties to meet? You can skip that frustration and headache with Calendly, a tool that allows for effortless scheduling between multiple parties.
All you have to do is send a special link to the person that you want to schedule time with, and the software takes care of the rest. Emails are sent out, and the meeting is set up automatically.
It’s a great tool because it gives the requestor an idea of when you’re available instead of having to email you to get that information.
#3 – Xero
Accounting is just as important within CRE as it is in any other industry. In fact, proper accounting can truly make or break your success as an investor. The commercial property space has a lot of moving parts, after all.
Xero can easily handle all of the demands of CRE, but it will still be up to you to ensure proper bookkeeping. As your business grows, you can turn over this task to a contractor or in-house help.
#4 – Zoom
The rise in remote work has made Zoom practically a necessity. One of the biggest keys to success as a new investor is the ability to connect with people from a wide range of backgrounds within the industry.
This means that you won’t just talk to other investors; talking with title company representatives, real estate attorneys, appraisers, estimators, and brokers is just as important. There are many hands involved in the world of commercial real estate, and getting on Zoom calls should be second nature at this point.
The great part about Zoom isn’t just that you ae able to connect with anyone even if they don’t have a Zoom account. It’s that you can record sessions for future review if necessary. Let’s say that you get into a real estate group where helpful tips are shared.
If that session is recorded, you can simply get the recording and review it when you have time. Sometimes taking notes from an earlier conversation unlocks insights we didn’t think of the first time.
#5 – Canva
Graphics and diagrams are certainly part of commercial real estate, and trying to hire a designer every time you need something can get difficult in terms of not just price but speed. The goal as a new investor is to try to smooth the road as much as possible. Making things complicated slows down the deal process.
Enter Canva, an app that can handle just about any graphic design need that you have in the early stages. It’s available on the web as well as by mobile app, making it a very portable way to handle graphics concerns.
#6 – DocuSign
Signing everything with pen and paper is so 90s; digital signatures are the way of the future for multiple reasons. Commercial real estate needs speed, and shuffling paper back and forth doesn’t lend itself well to the need for speed.
You don’t have to be a Top Gun to close lots of deals in the commercial space, but having the ability to securely store sensitive real estate documents is pretty important.
It can also open up the doors to investing outside of your normal market, which can bring in overlooked opportunities that aren’t as competitive.
#7 – AppFolio
Digital solutions that store important portfolio details are worth their weight in gold. As a new investor, it is tempting to try to turn Excel into doing things that it really shouldn’t do, like store tons of information. While it can handle a spreadsheet full of information, a tool like AppFolio is far superior.
As your deal count grows, the complexities grow as well. How will you conduct property management duties? Will that be something outsourced to a management company or something that you handle in-house?
Either way, being able to see your portfolio at a glance as it grows is something critical for growth. AppFolio provides not just great visual tools, but strong reporting as well. While it isn’t a free tool, it is a powerful suite with features that will pay for themselves as your portfolio grows. In the early stages it’s perfectly fine to skip it and track in Excel until your needs scale up.
Making the Most of These Tools
The tools listed in this guide are designed to be used frequently, if not every single day. While some sound straightforward and common sense, that’s the entire point: if it isn’t straightforward, it isn’t going to be useful. Investors have to stay as flexible as possible as the CRE world can become quite competitive in multiple markets.
Understanding the way your local market works is only the beginning: searching for and analyzing good deals is just as important. Don’t forget to tap into a good commercial real estate locator service to round things out!
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