Making The Deal
July 17, 2026
We all hear a lot of talk about buying real estate or buying a business. There’s the guy who says he does 10 deals a month or the business partners who buy a $2 million business with very little cash and mostly seller financing. These deals do happen of course. But what we don’t hear about is the boring, sometimes stressful, sometimes agonizingly frustrating back story behind the deal.
What did they have to go through during the negotiating process? What did they do during the due diligence phase and what did they possibly forget to do? That’s the stuff that can mean the life or death of a deal. After spending almost 16 years as a commercial real estate broker and 5 plus years as a general contractor building houses and industrial properties I can tell you making the deal is where the money is made (most of the time). Most commercial real estate brokers and business brokers enjoy the deal so much that we do it on behalf of other people. I’ve worked more deals for my clients than for myself. It’s a great thrill to find places for money to go.
Some people find the process very stressful. Others are excited by it and thrive on it. If the process of investing in real estate or a business is stressful to you- get an agent or broker to help. Let them do the stressful part because they are the type that get excited and thrive on making the deal. Don’t avoid buying a property because the deal is stressful. The financial rewards can far outweigh the stress as long as you make the right deal. The financial momentum you will gain by investing in a property will bring you benefits well beyond the cash flow. There are 6 ways to make money on real estate investments and that makes it well worth making the deal.
They are:
1. Cash Flow: Monthly profit from the rent.
2. Property Value Appreciation: Appreciation is a very natural and fairly passive way of gaining value in your property. It may not seem like this is making you money. It is. It's just making you money over time. It is “silent profit”.
3. Depreciation: The third way you make money on a real estate investment is through depreciation. This is the beautiful part about investing in commercial real estate. Your property can appreciate in value and depreciate at the same time. The depreciation gives you the benefit through your income tax. Because of depreciation, it is possible, after paying your expenses and depreciating your property on your taxes, to earn some, and sometimes most of the income from your property tax-free.
4. Loan Paydown: The Rental Income Pays Your Loan Payments. Your tenants are helping you build equity.
5. Make A Profit When You Sell If you need to sell the property for any reason, you're going to sell it at a profit, and if you sell it using the right technique, you can take that profit and not pay any taxes on it as long as you invest it in another property.
6. Make Money When You Buy: Make money when you buy the property by buying below the property’s actual appraised or market value. When you can do that you have built in equity/value up front. This is where the job of adding value to the property begins and then shows up in the end. When you exit the property, your profit is higher.
The Right Deal
Now you have a reason to go through the deal making process. Making the Right Deal is the key. The right deal is not always about price. Sometimes it’s about financing terms. Sometimes it’s timing. Is it the right time to buy that particular property, or are you feeling rushed to make the deal? It can also be about the type of property. There are many types of properties to invest in. They will not all be right for you.
The Reward
But the financial reward and the boost in your financial momentum can be substantial. It can be a safety net for your current business or for your retirement plan. It can even be your entire retirement plan. It can change your life just by adding the extra income and building the equity.
I could write about buying real estate and businesses for hours. But for now I will stop here. Real estate is entering a very interesting time. Things are happening that have not made it to the mainstream news yet. I’ll be talking more about Making The Deal in upcoming issues. It’s not just about real estate. It applies to every transaction you’re involved in. Stay tuned.
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