COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE ADVISORY
See through the pitch. Know what the numbers actually say.
Commercial real estate decisions are too consequential to rely on a broker's projections. Liberty Clear serves as your independent strategic advisor — bringing institutional-grade modeling and analysis to every acquisition, refinancing, and repositioning decision.
CLIENT SITUATIONS
USE CASE 01
MUTLIFAMILY ACQUISITION
"The broker's IRR looked compelling. Was it real?"
Investor syndicate, Phoenix AZ. 12-unit multifamily. Broker projecting 13% IRR. Capital ready to deploy.
A small investor group was presented with a 12-unit multifamily deal with a broker-projected 13% IRR. The deal looked strong on the surface — but they wanted a neutral third party to rebuild the model from scratch before committing capital. They had no interest in relying on numbers produced by someone earning a commission on the sale.
WHAT LIBERTY CLEAR WOULD DO
✓
✓
✓
Built a full acquisition model using market-based rental comps and realistic lease-up timelines
Ran DSCR sensitivity analysis across a range of interest rate and financing scenarios
Stress-tested exit assumptions and adjusted for realistic cap rate movement over the projected hold period
The true IRR with realistic rents was 11.5% — materially below the broker's projection. Armed with independent analysis, the group negotiated a $150,000 price reduction and restructured their financing. The deal proceeded on their terms.
USE CASE 02
RETAIL STRIP ACQUISITION
"The OM said 9.2% cap rate. Our model said something different."
Private investor, Dallas-Fort Worth TX. Partially vacant retail strip. Value-add repositioning thesis.
A private investor was evaluating a partially vacant retail strip mall with a value-add thesis. The offering memorandum projected a 9.2% stabilized cap rate — but the assumptions underpinning that number looked optimistic on lease-up timing and light on tenant improvement costs. He wanted the numbers independently rebuilt before making an offer.
WHAT LIBERTY CLEAR WOULD DO
✓
✓
✓
Built a full financial model using local lease comps and realistic vacancy absorption timelines for the DFW submarket
Modeled detailed tenant improvement and leasing commission costs the OM had significantly underreported
Ran cash flow sensitivities across re-tenanting delays, rental rate fluctuations, and interest rate shifts
True stabilized cap rate: 7.6%, not 9.2%. Upfront leasing costs: $220,000 above OM estimates. Armed with the analysis, the investor had the leverage to renegotiate, restructure, or walk away — entirely on his terms.
USE CASE 03
OFFICE CONVERSION
"It looked like a great conversion opportunity. The numbers told a different story."
Small business owner, San Francisco CA. Vacant office-to-co-working conversion. $1.5M+ capex contemplated.
A buyer was excited about converting a vacant office building into a co-working space in a recovering SF submarket. The opportunity looked compelling on the surface — but municipal permitting, seismic upgrade requirements, and co-working lease-up timelines had not been properly modeled. He engaged Liberty Clear before committing to due diligence costs.
WHAT LIBERTY CLEAR WOULD DO
✓
✓
✓
Built a full project pro-forma layering in permitting costs, change-of-use fees, seismic requirements, and TI allowances
Sourced local comps for comparable commercial transitions and validated scope with an architect contact
Modeled time-to-revenue using co-working lease-up benchmarks for the submarket and stress-tested occupancy ramp scenarios
Total projected costs exceeded $1.75M with risk-adjusted cash flows well below target returns. Liberty Clear's recommendation: pass. The client redirected capital to a mixed-use building with existing tenants — a better fit for his risk profile. We built the model for that opportunity too.