WNY chapter of NYSCAR's education event was well attended: Future sessions are being planned

NYSCAR's WNY chapter recently hosted another continuing education program and president Patricia Collins said the good attendance bodes well for future sessions. "We had more than two dozen commercial brokers and agents in attendance from the local area and from as far away as Albany and Long Island," said Collins of Coldwell Banker Commercial Meridian. "There is definitely a demand in WNY for professional development courses directly related to the practice of commercial real estate." The day-long course, Investment Property Analysis and Creative Transaction Formulas, was sponsored by NYSCAR in cooperation with the WNY chapter and the Society of Exchange Counselors. Robert Giniecki, CCIM, SEC, of Foresite Realty Advisors, Inc., conducted the training session that provided those attending with alternative transaction considerations that help improve property marketability. The course addressed many issues common in commercial real estate such as how to: * Help clients establish realistic property values * Address obstacles associated with overpriced or over-financed property * Overcome negative cash flow situations * Build client wealth by maximizing return on investment * Utilize non-traditional techniques to finance property transactions The Society of Exchange Counselors, a by-invitation-only association formed in 1961, is composed of real estate professionals "driven by a focus on people, and who possess proven skills in counseling, exchanging and creative real estate." "What is terrific about Bob Giniecki's presentation is that he not only teaches creative real estate, he lives it," said Randall Brown, a WNY-NYSCAR board member with Howard Hanna Holt Real Estate in Chautauqua County. "Bob brings real life experience, real deals to the class discussion. Some of the transactions he's been involved in are almost incomprehensible in their myriad complexity, but they demonstrate how the practice of creative real estate helps get deals done." Another WNY-NYSCAR board member, Steven Hunt of Hunt Commercial Real Estate, said greater use of the creative techniques presented by Giniecki could be key to the nation's economic recovery. "The course greatly expanded the boundaries of using mortgages, additional collateral, leases, and equity balancing in creative combinations," Hunt said. "It reinforced the importance of brokers working together to accelerate transactions in difficult economic times." In fact, stimulating the commercial real estate industry and the economy was the genesis of the Society of Exchange Counselors when realtor Richard Reno sought an alternative to the dearth of cash buyers in a San Diego market that was overbuilt in the 1950s. According to the SEC's website, Reno concluded that the most effective way to deal with real estate in a stressed market was to "abandon the traditional approach of focusing entirely on the property and incorporate into the process the circumstances surrounding the ownership of the property." He observed that properties do not have needs and desires, people do and that personal motivation, benefits sought, and tax matters needed to be elevated as considerations in real estate transactions. While completing creative transactions can be important pieces of commercial real estate, conducting creative educational programming is one of WNY-NYSCAR's goals, said board member Eric Tudor, Coldwell Banker Commercial Meridian's managing member. "Courses written for the commercial broker are an important benefit of WNY-NYSCAR membership," said Tudor, who chairs the organization's program committee. "We have held a number of courses and will continue to look for and present those specifically oriented to the commercial real estate practitioner." "It's definitely a value-added member benefit," Collins said of the educational programming and "we are very pleased with the level of attendance by our members." The WNY chapter of NYSCAR is an organization of commercial real estate professionals primarily serving the Buffalo/Niagara and WNY area. In collaboration with Buffalo Niagara Enterprise, the chapter maintains the Buffalo Niagara Commercial Listing System, www.buffaloniagaracls.com. The Catylist-powered system is the premier commercial property multiple listing service in the Buffalo-Niagara market and provides a globally-accessible, state-of-the-art gateway for commercial real estate information available in the region. Chapter membership information for licensees and affiliates is available at www.wnynyscar.com.