Our New Milford Office

We recently opened a beautiful new office on the Milford Green, where many of our best commercial agents ply their trade, and we've been getting lots of compliments on the space (and the agents!).  We wanted to embrace our commitment to the Greater Milford market by putting our best foot forward, and we did.  The office had several big transactions in the works at the time of the ribbon cutting, and we are looking forward to a booming summer. Come visit us!



 

Investment properties around the country

People have always felt, as Tip O'Neill famously said, that "all politics are local".  Many say the same about real estate, as a variant on the "location, location, location" theme.  It turns out, though, that investment real estate is becoming national, or even global.  Sellers looking to do 1031 tax-deferred exchanges are looking far and wide for the best matches, and there are many opportunities all over for such transactions.  Every day, I receive bulletins for investment properties from everywhere imaginable, with cap rates and returns spelled out.


We find that, as people move to other locations, they often want to move their investments as well.  For example, a shopping center in Milford may be exchanged for an office building in Florida, as the second home becomes the primary residence.  This blog post is just a friendly reminder that we can find you property anywhere in the world, through our connections and networks, so feel free to call us if you have a hankering for medical space in Topeka, an Arby's in San Antonio, or an apartment building in Spokane.  You may not even know that you want any of these properties, but it's an increasing part of our global outlook these days.

New Life for New Agents

There are two types of potential commercial real estate agents that make our hearts beat faster.  The first is that person who is retiring, but with energy and a desire to do something else.  The second kind is the corporate executive who doesn't want to move away from the area, so is willing to change fields in order to stay.  There are plenty of people who don't fit into those two groups who are perfectly likely to succeed, but they don't always have the financial resources to allow for the transition, and these two types often do. 

We can tell that the real estate market is improving by the number of agents going into the business.  November marked the first time in five years that the number of members of the CT MLS system went up.  Commercial improvement tends to lag behind residential, but people seem to be looking into commercial real estate also.

We've just hired a few new people who fall into the categories we prize.  Tony Bialecki, who has been working in economic development for the City of New Haven since 1981, spending the past 13 years as Deputy Director of Economic Development, is a prime example.  Tony, who seems to be the unusual public servant who is universally loved and admired, decided to leave his job at the end of the past administration.  He began with us last month, and is off to a great start.  He has lots of knowledge, legions of contacts, and the drive and desire to master a new discipline.

Our Milford office has two recruits from the last year or so.  Dick Lombardo retired from UI after 35 years, and is eager to put his skills and network to work.  Eileen Russell had a past life in the technology field, which is incredibly helpful in the agent's role of financial analyst.

Abigail Rider, who was most recently Director for University Properties at Yale, just mailed in her license paperwork this week, and brings a host of talents in remediation, negotiation, and repurposing of properties. She is both consulting in the realm of academic real estate, and expanding to work on other kinds of commercial real estate. 

We can't wait to see what these new faces can accomplish!  And we have room for a few more....

Great News! We're Growing!

Yesterday, we added a new Milford office, with very successful and seasoned commercial agents in it, as we  completed a merger with George J. Smith & Son Realtors.  The Smith firm, which has been in existence for 126 years, adds to the 54 years of Pearce Real Estate to give clients the benefit of a total of 180 years of company operations.

After the past several years of doing little other than cutting and closing, it's wonderful to be able to grow, and to look forward with anticipation to better tomorrows.  There are now 16 of us in the Pearce Commercial Division, a number that exceeds almost all of the other firms in Connecticut, including the national firms.  Our combined size positions us to obtain more and better listings, have broader contacts, and share valuable information from our office in Rocky Hill, our headquarters in North Haven, and our new office in Milford.

We look forward to serving you in one of our locations!