Commercial Real Estate Success: How Relationships Create Bigger Deals | Anthony Behar

Anthony Behar (00:00)
Relationships are so, so important. And I’m always been a big believer in relationships and developing relationship management, right? So first you want to develop relationships, then you’re gonna have to manage the relationships and you’re gonna have to keep inputting to the relationship. So I there’s a great analogy. It’s like a relationship’s kind of like having a bank account. So you have

money in a bank or you have a relationship, but if you’re constantly just making withdrawals from the relationship, that rate relationship’s gonna deplete, just like your bank account would. So you have to make deposits. So what are deposits? Deposits are reaching out, it’s ⁓ you know taking someone out for lunch, it it it’s helping them, it’s giving them advice, it’s making introductions, it’s referring people

even if nothing’s gonna come back to you in return and having that mindset of hey it it’s not about what’s in it for me it’s like how can I help this person right and sometimes things come back sometimes it doesn’t and that’s okay and and maybe it’s a year maybe it’s five years later maybe it’s never but not doing it because I’m expecting something doing it because it’s the right thing to do. And so that’s about making deposits into a relationship.

Quentin Edmonds (02:52)
Hello everyone. Welcome to the Real Estate Pros Podcast. I am your host, Q Edmonds, and I am indeed excited to be here today. I have another fantastic guest.

And this gentleman comes with 24 years of experience. He is a partner at Major Properties. They’re in the brokerage business, they represent property owners. I’m excited for us to peek through his lens, his lens, learn from his experience, glean from his knowledge. So I’m gonna introduce you all to Mr. Anthony Behar Mr. Anthony, how are you doing today, sir?

Anthony Behar (03:30)
Hey

Q, great, great to be here. Thanks so much for having me, man. I’m love it.

Quentin Edmonds (03:35)
Yeah, man. ⁓ I’m glad you’re here. You’ll hear me say this again at the end, but I think time is our most precious commodity. So I value you for being here and giving us your time. Thank you. Definitely, definitely. and so listen, I’m the type, sir. I like to dive right in. So I would love if you can tell the people what’s your major focus these days. And if you don’t mind, give us a little bit of an origin story, kind of how you got into the space you’re in where the passion comes from, and then tell them what markets you’re operating in. So, Mr. Anthony, you got the floor, sir.

Anthony Behar (04:04)
All right,

appreciate that. So ⁓ I just said the business, the company’s called Major Properties, and we actually have been in the Los Angeles area for over 60 years, the company. I’ve been with the firm for about twenty-four years now. And ⁓ also our business, our our specialty is the brokerage business. So we represent property owners, we represent buyers, investors, and developers.

Quentin Edmonds (04:06)
⁓

Anthony Behar (04:31)
So we we sell buildings really in Los Angeles. Our niche focus is commercial and industrial property. So anything that falls into the distribution space, manufacturing, wholesale, e-commerce, logistics, owner users, right? It could be somebody in the food business. It could be somebody, you know, making calculators or something like that. So anything that belongs in a warehouse from

Manufacturing, distribution, those are the type of people we work with. Our clients build those properties, they invest in those properties, they occupy those properties, and we’re help we’re there to help facilitate that process, whether it’s on the buying, investing, developing, ⁓ leasing side of it, we’re involved in it. And just to be clear, so there’s a lot of people that do what I do, but one of the things that I think’s

kind of separates us is we’re not everywhere. We’re very, very focused asset class wise as I described. And geography wise, we’re really focused in LA County. We don’t try to be everywhere. We don’t want to be across the entire country. LA County is a very big county. We’re LA is one of the big second biggest markets in the country. So the real estate in these areas is very dense. LA is a very dense area. And

There’s a lot of real estate and there’s a lot of real estate opportunities as properties become obsolete. So that’s why we tend to be very focused in greater LA.

Quentin Edmonds (06:07)
Yeah. Love it, sir. Love it. Love it. So where did the passion come from? And well I call it passion, but I mean twenty-four years, man. Ain’t nothing to see that right. So where did where did the passion come from to be in the space that you’re in?

Anthony Behar (06:19)
So interesting

enough, ⁓ I do have a little family background. My father was in the real estate business when I was a kid. He was ⁓ in the syndication business. So he syndicated apartment buildings. And I never really learned the business back then, but I think it was in my blood somehow. And I you know, I kind of got into real estate because

thing I was in the dot com business. I was in advertising sales in in the nineties, ⁓ mid nineties and up into the early 2000, 2001 or two. And that market blew up. one of my mentors, Brad, I knew from a charity we were both involved in. And he said, you know, why don’t you think about real estate? I did. And I knew I talked to a lot of my dad’s old friends who were involved in real estate and

kind of felt like it was the right path for me. Yeah. And so I jumped in and just jumped into the pool, right? And you kind of sink or swim at that point. And it’s worked out and it’s provided me a great life, a great lifestyle. And I just, you know, was I’m just one of the things Q at find very exciting is, and I didn’t know about this until I got into real estate, was there’s so many different types of businesses that I get to work with. Right. Because I’m not

a guy that’s gonna sit there and build things with my hands has never been me. But to see guys in there with making things, distributing things, designing things and you know, like any kind of business that’s out there. And so I’m around that. I see it and I get to help these businesses. And that’s been super exciting for me.

Quentin Edmonds (08:02)
Yeah.

man. Thank you, sir. Thank you for that input, that insight. I appreciate it, Anthony. And sir, I I often say destiny has no wasted moments. Right? So I think about, you know, your family history. And I feel like we are borrowing from each leg of the journey.

We’re borrowing from the success. We’re borrowing from the failures. It makes us the people that we are today. So, Mr. Anthony, I would love to know throughout your journey within this space, what has it taught you about yourself? Has it made you more disciplined? Has it made you more humble? Has it increased your tenacity? Has it made you more and innovative? Like, what has the journey taught you about you, sir?

Anthony Behar (09:25)
Well, it’s a great question. So it’s taught me a lot. I mean, this business has really humbled me from from the beginning. So on this side of the business, you you know, there’s no there’s no paycheck, right? And you could work as hard as you can and still not get a paycheck. So that’s been, you know, one of the I think challenging things, difficult things. And

Yes, it’s taught me to be disciplined. It’s taught me to be focused, but it’s also taught me to really be a giver and knowing it’s you know, it’s just not about me and and making a paycheck. It’s really about learning to be of service, right? Really and I never had that mentality before I got into the business, but as I’ve

grown in the business, I’ve really learned to be of service to my clients. And once I had that mental shift, things started to change and started to fall in place. And I still think about that all the time today. And it’s something that I try to teach to the younger kids coming into the business today.

Quentin Edmonds (10:34)
Yes, sir. No, I I I appreciate that. I love servitude. Like one of the proverbs that I kind of live by, it says, When you refresh others, you in return will be refreshed. And so, like, you got that mindset of serving people, it’s like a boomerang. That thing is going to come back. So if you serve people, there are a second people that’s supposed to serve you. And if you continue to serve, you’re going to generate the people that’s supposed to serve you. And it’s just like this give and take, give and take. And so

⁓ man, I I appreciate again the reflective answer. Yeah.

Anthony Behar (11:05)
Yeah, yeah. Yeah. I’m a big believer in that.

Quentin Edmonds (11:08)
Yes, sir. Absolutely. So I I would love to know, you know, how you kind of, you know, structure yourself with some of the systems you have in place. So I’ll kind of ask it like this. What are what is one maybe operational thing that you’ve put into place, let’s say like the last two years, that is really helping you be successful and maybe even change the way you kind of go about your work?

Anthony Behar (11:28)
Hmm. Well, it’s another great question. Love it. ⁓ well, I I have a I have a I have a a mantra I say and I s and it goes like this. ⁓ I check in with myself before I check in with the world, right? So that that to so what I and the way I use that is I don’t pick up my phone first thing in the morning and

You know, of course I pick it up because I leave the house, but I’m not sitting there scrolling, I’m not on the news sites, and I’m not checking emails. And so I do my thing, I hit the gym, you know, I do my cold plunge and saunas and and and I get myself mentally primed up for the day. Yeah. And so that allows me to just be disciplined, focused, and really

You know, and be of service and pay attention to the things that I need to pay attention to because if I start my day looking at news or looking at emails, I’m on defense right away. I don’t want to be there. I don’t want to start solving for other people. I need to take care of me first and then be able to give a hundred percent to everybody else. Right. So that’s been that’s you know, you talk about systems, right? That’s a mental system. Yes, sir. I have operating system.

that I’m very, very strict by.

Quentin Edmonds (12:51)
Yes, sir. Yeah. Man, listen, almost like we’re in parallel worlds, because I’m I’m with you. And I wrote that down. I check in with myself before I check in with the world. Like that’s something that I feel like I’m intentional in doing, but you gave it language. So I appreciate you saying that because that that that perspective is in there now. Like those words is in there. And it makes it even more.

routine for me to check in with myself before I check in with the world. So sir, I appreciate you saying that. I I really do. Thank you so much for that. ⁓ Mr. Anthony, what’s neck what’s next for you, sir? What are you looking to like solve or scale next? What’s next for you, man?

Anthony Behar (14:06)
Yeah. ⁓ I’d say right now, ⁓ you know, we’re still growing the business and there’s just a lot of different opportunities here in Los Angeles. So I’m excited to see where and how real estate is shifting. Real estate is changing so much here. And that’s sort of, you know, we don’t work on cookie cutter deals. So every building opportunity person is different and

24 years in the business. I’m still learning, still growing, still getting challenged, still finding things out. And our, you know, sometimes we have, you know, a kind of a straightforward deal. Maybe those are one in 10, 1 in 20, but by and large, there’s so many little nuances in in all of our deals. And the deals get more and more complicated to to value and to underwrite. And so being successful, you know, going forward in the next 10, 20 years is gonna be.

Being able to look at properties, being able to look at real estate and seeing where the opportunities lie, seeing what this can be, right? Okay, just because it’s been this warehouse for the last 20 or 50 years doesn’t mean that’s what it’s gonna be. And LA is so diverse, both culturally, the landscape, the people, the languages, and you gotta be able to kind of dance around all of this and that that

keeps me on my toes, it keeps me fresh, it keeps me wanting to keep learning, engaging, being involved with the city, and staying on top of everything else that’s involved. So it’s not just about, ⁓ list this building, sell it. You know, you you know, being in our side of the business queue, you gotta understand, you know, regulations change, zoning changes, laws change, taxes change, environmental issues change.

Council people, who’s running the city? Are they supportive of development? Are they supportive of real estate? So just being involved and and trying to stay on top of all of that is is exciting to me.

Quentin Edmonds (16:11)
man, Anthony again, sir. Man, thank you for that answer, reflective answer. Now, I’m gonna love asking you this question. I ask everybody that comes on about relationships. So I would love to know your philosophy on building healthy business relationships. What are some of the relationships that’s in your circle now that has benefited you, that continue to help you grow, that has helped you do business? So, Anthony, if you don’t mind, sir, talk to me a little bit about relationships.

Anthony Behar (16:37)
man, you that’s like the center, right?

Relationships are so, so important. And I’m always been a big believer in relationships and developing relationship management, right? So first you want to develop relationships, then you’re gonna have to manage the relationships and you’re gonna have to keep inputting to the relationship. So I there’s a great analogy. It’s like a relationship’s kind of like having a bank account. So you have

money in a bank or you have a relationship, but if you’re constantly just making withdrawals from the relationship, that rate relationship’s gonna deplete, just like your bank account would. So you have to make deposits. So what are deposits? Deposits are reaching out, it’s ⁓ you know taking someone out for lunch, it it it’s helping them, it’s giving them advice, it’s making introductions, it’s referring people

even if nothing’s gonna come back to you in return and having that mindset of hey it it’s not about what’s in it for me it’s like how can I help this person right and sometimes things come back sometimes it doesn’t and that’s okay and and maybe it’s a year maybe it’s five years later maybe it’s never but not doing it because I’m expecting something doing it because it’s the right thing to do. And so that’s about making deposits into a relationship.

So

Mine, I’m look, I’m a big believer and I have relationships with attorneys, with ⁓ you know, wealth advisors, with ⁓ financial planners, with insurance people, every type of attorney you can imagine. So when a client calls me, I have at my fingertips I know who to go to because I have relationships with these people, I engage with them, I see a lot of these people monthly for breakfast, for coffees, for lunches, and

you know, I’m I’m putting in the time for that. So that’s from like having relationships with other professionals. And then, you know, with the relationships with the clients, I mean, sometimes these relationships happen in, you know, a few weeks. Sometimes it’s years and years. It could be I just did a deal with a a client of mine that I was introduced to p like, I don’t know, maybe fifteen years ago. And, you know, I had

Done some stuff with her on and off, but we never got to the finish line. I got hired, I got fired, I got hired, I got fired, and markets changed and she gets she got crazy at times. But at the end of the day, she came back to me and you know, it was ⁓ a really big deal in a an office building in in the heart of Los Angeles, right across from the La Brea Tarpit. And it was probably one of the biggest deals that I did by myself.

But that was a f a 15 year relationship with somebody. And it takes and it wasn’t easy, right? It takes tenacity. It takes ⁓ staying power and and it it it takes ⁓ being able to forgive people too, right? And not taking things personally if a client you know you know says something or gets upset ⁓ and just being able to stick around. So I’d say those those are

My thoughts on that.

Quentin Edmonds (20:32)
Yeah, Mr. Anthony, sir. No, thank you, man. I ooh, that forgiveness part. I’m glad you put that in there. ⁓ that’s huge. I you know, one of my mentors said that forgiveness is actually for you, it’s not for the other person. Because was like forgiveness is like you

trying you drinking the poison wishing the other person you know get gets harmed right and so you gotta sometimes clear you know yourself and and and and save for yourself to forgive that way you don’t have the animosity in your heart and so that’s good that’s a good piece that you added in there sir and I appreciate it yeah Mr. Anthony Sir man I I appreciate you so much this conversation has been rich if someone wanted to reach out to you connect with you collaborate with you learn more about what you’re doing

How can I get in contact with you, sir?

Anthony Behar (21:21)
Super easy. ⁓ I’m on LinkedIn a lot. That’s probably my number one platform. I post articles there. I’ll give updates on deals, insights, things like that. So if you reach out to me on LinkedIn, I’ll be sure to ⁓ connect with you, message each other, and you know, p follow me on LinkedIn. I post a lot of good stuff about Los Angeles real estate. And that’s probably the best place. Or

majorproperties.com is our website. majorproperties.com. Learn about all things commercial industrial real estate in Los Angeles.

Quentin Edmonds (21:56)
Yes, sir. Well, Mr. Anthony, say three things to you sincerely. The first one I mentioned before, thank you for your time. You know, I think time is our most precious commodity. So thank you for your time. Secondly, thank you for your stories. Thank you for what I call the gift of your authenticity, the gift of even your vulnerability. Because I leave, I believe our stories they plant seeds, they sprinkle seeds, and we never know when the seed is going to take root and grow, but the seed is there. So I believe you planted some seeds today.

And lastly, sir, thank you for your mindset. Thank you for the way you think and bringing your mindset to this platform. Appreciate you coming on, sir.

Anthony Behar (22:31)
Appreciate you having me. Great job. Good questions. And ⁓ I wish you well and all the best.

Quentin Edmonds (22:38)
Appreciate you so much, sir. Well, listen, y’all heard Mr. Anthony. You’ve gleaned from his experience. His information is in the show notes. So please get in contact with him. But definitely make sure you’re subscribed here. Because I promise you, we’re going to continue to bring up amazing people, just like thee, Mr. Anthony B. Hart. So, sir, I say thank you again. Yep. Absolutely. And everyone else, you have a fantastic day.