The reactions we received to last month’s newsletter, Why Is It So Hard To Find Office Space in 2025, were very illuminating.  We all know that New Jersey business owners are a tough breed, and dealing with long-term business decisions in the face of economic uncertainty is a real challenge.  

          In the office sector, many small and midsized tenants are renewing the lease year to year or month to month. It seems too overwhelming to make long-term decisions like office leasing, staffing or major product or technological investments that may have implications for the next decade.  

          For those faced with pending lease decisions, there is today a real concern about getting unbiased advice from a real estate professional.  You may be surprised to learn that the majority of income earned by the major real estate companies is derived from building management and ownership of real estate assets and not brokerage.  At one of the largest of these full-service real estate companies, CBRE, in a 2025 report we learn that less that 15 percent of earnings at CBRE come from their real estate brokerage services division. We should point out that the majority of those services are from agencies with Landlords, not Tenant representation. 

          Readers of this newsletter know that not all real estate brokers are alike.  Landlord agents will work on behalf of Landlords one day and Tenants the next.  Some may think of this practice as an obvious conflict of interest, but they may not know that there are other alternatives.

          Exclusive tenant reps or advisors are real estate brokers that only represent tenants and buyers of commercial real estate.  They never represent Landlords.  An exclusive tenant rep will say so in writing, with an agreement known as an exclusive broker agreement stating that they represent you the Tenant and not the Landlord. 

So, who can you trust? We at Dickstein Real Estate are exclusive tenant reps and we never represent Landlords. If you would like to learn more about us, give us a call to find out why, at Dickstein Real Estate Services, OUR DIFFERENCE IS YOUR ADVANTAGE®.

          Regards,

          Lawrence Dickstein

Dickstein Real Estate Services