Latitude Commercial’s team of brokers is always striving to further its experience, build its credentials, and find more ways to offer its clients high-quality commercial real estate services.
Last month, Latitude Co-Founder and Senior Vice President Brett McDermott exemplified that attitude when he earned CCIM designation – making him a Certified Commercial Investment Member. CCIMs complete advanced coursework, extensive training, and have some of the largest portfolios of experience in the country. In all, less than 10% of commercial real estate professionals are CCIMs.
“To me, being a CCIM means going above and beyond the traditional brokerage requirements,” McDermott said. “He or she is someone who has challenged themselves to differentiate themselves from the competition in order to provide superior service to their clients.”
McDermott completed a four-course curriculum that included additional studies on negotiation and ethics before completing a full-day exam that tested his mastery of the courses.
“I worked my way through the core classes over the last couple of years,” he said. “They gave me a deeper knowledge of financial analysis. They dig really deep into running pro formas on properties, calculating rates of returns with different methods, marketing strategies, and other helpful tools to service clients with.”
The designation is earned through the CCIM Institute, who does rigorous checks on every applicant’s portfolio to verify that they meet one of three requirements: three or more qualifying activities totaling $30 million or more; or exactly ten (10) qualifying activities totaling $10 million or more; or twenty (20) qualifying activities with no dollar volume requirement.
“I worked on compiling all the documentation needed for a good two weeks before submitting it all,” McDermott said. “They ask for invoices, proof of participation in the deal via closing statements or other documentation. It’s pretty detailed.”
The CCIM designation is a powerful networking tool, serving as a resource to open leads with other CCIMs throughout the state, or even the entire country. It also serves as a signal to clients that McDermott is an absolute expert at minimizing risk, maximizing returns, and optimizing value.
“I’m proud to share the CCIM designation with others throughout the U.S., and in particular, Indiana,” McDermott said. “With such a small percentage of brokers holding the title, it’s something to be proud of.”
McDermott, however, is not Latitude’s only CCIM. His brother Aaron McDermott, a fellow co-founder and the company president, also holds the designation.
“Aaron really helped push me to see it through over the last two years,” McDermott said. “We’re always pushing for both ourselves and our agents to better themselves, whether it be through education or by involving themselves in the local community.”
The McDermott’s take pride in creating an environment where employees strive to reach new heights - CCIM designations and beyond.
“We are willing to invest in our employees and push them to take classes as they see fit,” McDermott said. “We’ve had agents take coaching classes in the past, and we are always willing to assist with the financial aspect of those classes.”
To learn more about Latitude Commercial, visit latitudeco.com
