The Trades

“Don’t forget about the trades.”

The reminder came from our neighbor, Rudy, a lifelong tradesman. If you’ve read this column for any length of time, you’ve heard me mention him before. He’s one of my biggest supporters, an avid reader, and every so often he’ll stop me to challenge something I’ve written or offer a perspective I hadn’t considered.

This time, his message was different.

There was pride in his voice, certainly. But there was also disappointment. His concern was that too many young people have been encouraged to pursue white collar careers while overlooking professions that literally built America. Plumbers. Electricians. Carpenters. Concrete finishers. Welders. Heavy equipment operators. HVAC technicians. The list goes on.

His words stuck with me.

Coincidentally, just days earlier I had listened to a long-form conversation between former Navy SEAL Sean Ryan and Mike Rowe, best known for Dirty Jobs. Rowe has spent years advocating for skilled trades through his mikeroweWORKS Foundation, whose mission is to close America’s skilled labor gap, challenge the stigma surrounding vocational careers, and promote the value of hard work.

The timing was hard to ignore.

Perhaps the universe was nudging me in the same direction as Rudy.

You may be wondering what any of this has to do with commercial real estate.

Everything.

Every industrial building we lease, every office we sell, every warehouse we reposition, every manufacturing facility we tour exists because skilled tradesmen and women transformed a set of architectural drawings into a functioning building.

When a company relocates, it isn’t simply a lease signing. Electricians install power. Carpenters build offices. Concrete crews reinforce slabs. Dock equipment is installed. Fire sprinkler contractors make modifications. HVAC specialists rebalance the system. Painters, flooring contractors, roofers and dozens of other trades bring a vacant shell to life.

Without them, our transactions would remain little more than paper.

The same is true for manufacturing. Machines don’t maintain themselves. Distribution centers don’t repair themselves. Buildings age. Equipment wears out. Communities grow because skilled people know how to build, repair and improve them.

Yet somewhere along the way, we’ve unintentionally created the impression that success only comes with a four-year degree and a desk.

That simply isn’t true.

Many skilled trades provide outstanding incomes, entrepreneurial opportunities, job security and the satisfaction of creating something tangible at the end of every day. They also offer something increasingly rare: demand that continues to outpace supply.

Commercial real estate professionals witness this every day. We don’t simply sell buildings. We watch businesses expand because talented people make products, move freight and solve problems with their hands as well as their minds.

Rudy reminded me of something important.

The trades deserve more than our appreciation. They deserve our encouragement.

If you’re a parent, expose your children to the possibilities. If you’re an employer, invest in apprenticeships. If you’re a business leader, celebrate the craftsmen and women whose work makes yours possible.

America has always been built by people willing to roll up their sleeves.

Let’s make sure the next generation knows there is honor, opportunity and tremendous value in doing exactly that.

Allen C. Buchanan, SIOR, is a principal with Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services in Orange. He can be reached at abuchanan@lee-associates.com or 714.564.7104. His website is allencbuchanan.blogspot.com.
 
 

What is more American than the Fourth of July?

Our nation’s great experiment celebrated its 250th birthday this weekend. Spending the holiday in America’s heartland, Omaha, Nebraska, made the occasion even more meaningful.
 
Carla and I have now visited 47 of our 50 states. Only Kansas, North Dakota, and South Dakota remain. We hope to complete the list by 2027.
 
You may be wondering what any of this has to do with commercial real estate.
 
Stay with me.
 
Long flights create uninterrupted thinking time. Between hours on airplanes and the opportunity to train several of our younger associates during the trip, I found myself reflecting on the lessons I have learned during the past 41 years in commercial real estate brokerage.
 
Some came through success. Most came through mistakes.
 
Somewhere over the middle of America, I asked myself a simple question.
 
If I could sit down with the young man who entered this business in 1984, what would I tell him?
 
By the time we landed, I had my answer.
 
1. Every deal has a clock. Timing drives every transaction. Learn to recognize it before everyone else.
 
2. People rarely tell you the whole story first. Listen carefully, ask thoughtful questions, and dig beneath the surface. The real assignment usually comes later.
 
3. Never confuse activity with progress. Busy does not always mean productive. Focus on the work that actually moves a deal forward.
 
4. The best brokers ask uncomfortable questions early. Honest conversations save time, build trust, and prevent surprises.
 
5. Control the process, not the outcome. You cannot control markets or other people. You can control your preparation, communication, and professionalism.
 
6. Hope is not a business strategy. Hope without a plan is simply wishing. Replace optimism with action.
 
7. Every transaction creates your next transaction. Great service leads to referrals, repeat business, and a reputation that compounds over time.
 
8. Your calendar predicts your income. How you spend your time today usually determines your success six months from now.
 
9. Your pipeline is always telling you the truth. A healthy pipeline creates confidence. An empty one is an early warning sign that prospecting has slowed.
 
10. Consistency beats intensity. Extraordinary careers are built through ordinary disciplines repeated every day.
 
As I looked out the airplane window at the farms stretching across America’s heartland, I realized that while our business has changed dramatically since 1984, the fundamentals have not.
 
Technology has evolved. Markets have changed. Artificial intelligence is transforming the way we work.
 
But serving people, solving problems, building trust, and showing up consistently remain timeless principles.
 
Those lessons came to me somewhere over the middle of America.
 
Perhaps they are worth passing along.

Allen C. Buchanan, SIOR, is a principal with Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services in Orange. He can be reached at abuchanan@lee-associates.com or 714.564.7104. His website is allencbuchanan.blogspot.com.
 
 

A Little Roto Tilling

As I sit here wondering what, in my world, is worthy of a column, my mind keeps wandering. Artificial intelligence. Advanced manufacturing. The seemingly remarkable strength of the industrial real estate market. Training the next generation of commercial real estate professionals. The economy. Interest rates. Foreign wars. Supply chains. It is enough to make anyone’s head spin.
 
Normally, I would pick one subject, dig into it, and share my thoughts. This week, however, I have decided to do something different. Instead of grabbing a shovel and digging one deep hole, I am reaching for the roto tiller. I am going to stir up several patches of soil and see what grows.
 
Artificial intelligence is no longer something on the horizon. It has arrived. Every week another platform promises to make us more productive, more informed, and more efficient. I have embraced it as a tool, not a replacement. It helps me organize thoughts, summarize information, and even challenge my own assumptions. What it cannot do is replace experience, judgment, relationships, or trust. Those qualities are still earned the old fashioned way.
 
Speaking of change, manufacturing continues to surprise me. For years we heard about factories leaving the country. Today I see companies investing in automation, robotics, and advanced production techniques. Many manufacturers are expanding because they want greater control over their supply chains and want production closer to their customers. That trend has created opportunities throughout Southern California’s industrial market.
 
The industrial real estate market has also shown remarkable resilience. While headlines often focus on office vacancies or uncertainty in other property types, industrial space continues to benefit from strong underlying demand. Yes, tenants are becoming more selective. Yes, some markets are seeing more available space than they did a year ago. Even so, well located industrial buildings continue to attract attention from both users and investors.
 
One topic that has become increasingly important to me is training. After more than four decades in commercial real estate, I have learned that experience is valuable only if you are willing to pass it along. Watching younger professionals develop confidence and competence may be one of the most rewarding parts of this business. Knowledge does little good if it stays locked inside one person’s notebook.
 
Then there is the economy. Depending on which report you read or which television channel you watch, everything is either wonderful or headed for disaster. Reality usually lives somewhere in the middle. Business owners are still making decisions. Companies are still expanding, consolidating, buying, selling, and leasing. They simply want more information before making those decisions. Uncertainty has not stopped activity. It has simply lengthened the decision making process.
 
Finally, there is the rest of the world. International conflicts, changing trade policies, and political uncertainty remind us that commercial real estate does not operate in a vacuum. Decisions made thousands of miles away often find their way into conversations around conference tables here at home. Markets dislike uncertainty, but they also have an incredible ability to adapt.
 
Perhaps that is the common thread running through all these seemingly unrelated topics. Adaptation. Whether it is technology, manufacturing, commercial real estate, or our personal careers, those who continue learning and adjusting are usually the ones who thrive.
 
Sometimes it is healthy to put away the shovel and pick up the roto tiller. You may not dig as deeply, but you uncover a lot of interesting ground.
 
Allen C. Buchanan, SIOR, is a principal with Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services in Orange. He can be reached at abuchanan@lee-associates.com or 714.564.7104. His website is allencbuchanan.blogspot.com.