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Commercial Leasing Director, Owner-Side RecruitersAlso known as Director of Leasing (Office/Retail/Industrial)

Real Estate Headhunters: Most commercial owners assume their leasing director controls the flow of deals, but this person often functions as a passive conduit for brokers instead of an active asset creator. If your leasing head relies entirely on incoming broker calls, they wait for the market to bring them occupancy rather than forcing the asset into active circulation.

This is what we do all day: recruit property management and real estate professionals.

Your commercial asset is vacant because your leasing director failed to anticipate local market shifts.

No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.

Send Us Your Open RoleBook a callCall 305-306-4829
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
Director of Leasing (Office/Retail/Industrial)VP Leasing

01 / The decision

What does this hire really come down to?

Most commercial owners assume their leasing director controls the flow of deals, but this person often functions as a passive conduit for brokers instead of an active asset creator. If your leasing head relies entirely on incoming broker calls, they wait for the market to bring them occupancy rather than forcing the asset into active circulation.

An effective director does not just circulate flyers or wait for tour requests. They check the rent roll to see where lease expirations coincide with market demand and proactively engage tenants before they move. They understand the difference between a high-traffic broker who brings low-quality prospects and a quiet broker who brings signed deals.

True asset performance relies on a director who can defend your investment thesis during lease negotiations. They must possess the technical knowledge to manage complex LOI terms. You need someone who distinguishes between a winnable deal that builds long-term occupancy and a desperate concession that creates a bad financial position.

02 / Questions

What do we check before you see anyone?

  1. 01Review how they interpret a stagnating rent roll; a weak director blames the submarket while a strong director changes the marketing pitch.
  2. 02Check their grasp of data accuracy; they must distinguish between genuine prospect interest and broker window shopping.
  3. 03Check if they personally review lease provisions or blindly accept standard broker terms during initial document drafting.
  4. 04Check their ability to kill a bad deal early; a director who carries a deal to the final stage before finding a deal-breaker wastes your legal costs.
  5. 05Verify their technical familiarity with modeling; they should use it to test if a tenant improvement package actually aids your net operating income.
  6. 06Confirm their experience in managing complex retail or industrial owner-side deal structures versus simple office renewal work.

03 / Context

Where do we find people who are not applying?

  • We identify candidates within large organizations where the leasing director bears direct responsibility for the bottom line. These people work under tight portfolio constraints and learn to survive by delivering consistent occupancy results. We avoid people who have only ever worked for third-party brokerage houses, as they often lack the mindset required to protect long-term asset value.
  • High-performers move when their current portfolio limits their deal-making capacity or when the owner shifts strategy in a way that minimizes the team's impact. They seek roles where they can influence the asset strategy rather than just following existing directives. They are looking for a clear mandate to drive value.

04 / Pitfalls

Which hiring mistakes should you avoid?

  • Hiring someone who emphasizes their network over their technical capability; a contact list is useless if the person cannot negotiate a lease term to your benefit.
  • Overvaluing experience at prestigious firms without examining their individual contribution to occupancy gains or renewal retention rates.
  • Accepting a candidate who views their job as broker management rather than tenant acquisition; managers who prioritize being liked by brokers often lose bargaining power in critical negotiations.

Pay snapshot

$148,270

Commercial Leasing Director, Owner-Side maps to Sales Managers (11-2022), a broader occupation. BLS does not publish this exact real estate title separately. The property's scope, equipment, supervision and required credentials can differ from the occupation as a whole.

Sales Managers, SOC 11-2022. https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/ocwage_05152026.htm, May 2025 BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 15, 2026).

See the full salary guide

05 / Next steps

Your search in 3 steps

  1. 1

    Define the Asset Gap

    We analyze your occupancy struggles to see if you need a builder who targets new tenants or a stabilizer who protects your existing base. We map the deal flow bottlenecks in your current leasing cycle to understand if the problem is lead generation, negotiation skill, or technical lease documentation. This allows me to focus the search on candidates whose past portfolio experience mirrors your specific asset type and business challenges.

  2. 2

    Evaluate Negotiating Logic

    We vet candidates by presenting real deal scenarios that include aggressive tenant demands and complicated improvement requests. We ask how they would frame a counter-proposal that keeps the tenant without destroying your return on investment. This separates candidates who merely follow internal processes from those who understand the financial impact of every clause and concession they agree to include in a final lease document.

  3. 3

    Verify Market Grit

    Our final search phase includes deep interviews regarding how they manage broker relationships to ensure your asset gets priority status. We look for candidates who provide specific examples of how they influenced a broker to bring a deal to their asset instead of a competitor's. We ensure their approach matches your operational requirement for direct owner-side control over every pending deal and lease renewal process.

06 / Questions

What do owners ask before they hire?

How long will this search take?

A search for an effective commercial leasing director typically takes 60 to 90 days. We avoid rushing to ensure the candidate has the specific technical background your portfolio requires for long-term success.

How do you handle candidates who expect counteroffers?

We establish clear salary expectations early to prevent last-minute surprises. We help you design a compensation package that aligns with their value to your asset to minimize the need for reactive counteroffers.

Do you assist with relocation candidates?

We vet candidates willing to relocate if their experience is a perfect match for your asset demands. We handle the logistics of their transition so your team remains focused on leasing operations.

How do we ensure they are a good fit for our company culture?

We check how the candidate interacts with owners and boards to ensure their communication style fits your structure. We test their ability to explain complex deal risks in clear and concise terms.

What is the fee structure for this service?

We operate on a contingency basis, meaning our fee is payable only after you successfully hire the candidate. We provide the full fee agreement for your review before starting any search.

When do we pay the recruiting fee?

No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire under the standard contingency agreement. The signed agreement sets the terms; read the fee page before authorizing the search.

How long does it take to see a short list?

The scope of the job, candidate availability and your interview decisions affect the search. We explain the market response and agree next steps rather than promise a numeric deadline.

What if our chosen candidate gets a counteroffer?

We ask about the reasons for a move before an introduction. You still need a clear offer and an honest account of the job; an increase in pay alone may not resolve why someone considered leaving.

What are the replacement terms?

We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.

What do you not do?

We do not sell job-board reposting or send an unqualified resume stack. Standard permanent search is not hourly consulting or a retained assignment. Different engagements require agreed terms.

Next step

Send Us Your Open Role

Role, work email and phone is all we need to start. Details about your company and the job are optional.

No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.

We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.

Who do you need?

No job post. Tell us the role and we come back with a short, qualified shortlist. No upfront fee.

Step 1 of 2: the role
Role family pick the closest
How soon? optional

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Step 2 of 2: your details

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What happens next

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Our process

What do you get from The Six-Step Search?

Real Estate Headhunters begins with the decisions behind your vacancy, not an advert. You get a clear brief, a mapped candidate pool and evidence from direct conversations. We help you distinguish an interested person from a qualified fit, then support interviews and the decision without promising a completion date.

  1. 1

    Search Calibration

    A brief that settles the operating problem, reporting line, location, compensation and who can approve the hire.

  2. 2

    Market Mapping

    A view of relevant working backgrounds, asset types and experience rather than a search based only on titles.

  3. 3

    Professional Contact Intelligence

    Direct ways to approach relevant people respectfully, without relying on applications or exposing a confidential vacancy.

  4. 4

    Persistent Personalized Outreach

    A conversation about your actual role, with follow-up that establishes whether a move is worth discussing.

  5. 5

    Live Candidate Qualification

    Evidence about responsibilities, relevant results, systems and the practical reasons someone would accept the move.

  6. 6

    Candidate Intelligence and Process Support

    A short list with context for interviews, objections and decisions, not a stack of unexplained resumes.

Send Us Your Open Role

CAM has different meanings. NAA CAM is the Certified Apartment Manager credential. The Florida community association manager license is a separate license, cited here as an example of state licensing. In commercial budgets, CAM means common area maintenance. We check the credential or license relevant to the opening, where the state requires it.

Which related pages help with this opening?