Broker upbeat about commercial realty
Guglielmo foresees industrial parks as a major aspect of Allied’s portfolio. He plans to focus on $500,000 to $5million buildings “mom-and-pop” businesses would need.
Allied also deals in office space, apartments, mini-storage facilities and retail.
Recent developments, such as a Watson Land Co. speculative project in Redlands, suggest 2011 could be a year of recovery for industrial real estate.
Although overall recovery, particularly within labor markets, appears to be weak, Guglielmo says he is nothing but optimistic in starting a new business this year.
Question: What does it take to establish a new identity in your business?
Answer: That’s the challenge. Getting people to identify you with commercial real estate. We’ve spent a year designing our website, designing our signage.
Q: What do you think goes into a good website?
A: We didn’t want to go with a template site, and we worked with a company in Whittier that was really good.
Q: Is the map of available properties the key to the website for your business?
A: No, I think the key is search-engine optimization. It’s really important.
Like here (showing the website on his computer), I did these service areas, and we did a profile of each city … when somebody searches “commercial real estate Rancho Cucamonga,” they get us.
Q: How optimistic are you opening a business in this economy?
A: I think without a doubt, we have a strong base of educated employees here. I think it’s a great place to run a business or start a business, aside from the issues with California.
Mainly it’s distribution. Besides distribution (centers), those people need a place to live and a place to shop.
Q: What advice would you give to somebody looking for an industrial building?
A: Talk to somebody who knows the market, who can give them a whole picture of what’s available in the market, not just what they are trying to sell.
And get qualified, so they don’t get in trouble buying something they can’t afford.
Q: What kinds of trends are you seeing in apartments?
A: Basically, apartments are still one of the best classes to own in terms of commercial real estate. Unfortunately for some people, rents are going up and prices are stabilizing.
People who aren’t in homes anymore are going into the rental market.
Q: In your observations of which companies are making purchases or leases, are there any commercial sectors that are doing particularly well, post-recession?
A: I think medical’s doing pretty well.
I’m working with a (confidential) manufacturer who’s bringing jobs back from China. … Some manufacturing, medical is strong. We’ve even seen some uptick in retail.
THE 4-1-1
Allied Commercial Real Estate
3100 East Cedar St., Suite 7, Ontario
909-786-4300 / website: www.alliedcre.com
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