“We have the best people with the most market knowledge, which results in our being able to serve our customers better than anybody else.” —James Keegan
Established in 1976, Keegan & Coppin is the largest full-service commercial real estate company in the North Bay. It provides sales and brokerage, property management, consulting and construction services through its retail, builders and ranch and vineyard divisions.
The company employs about 80 people, including 59 agents, and serves a wide range of clients, among them a who’s who of North Bay developers, like Basin Street Properties and Airport Business Park. It manages more than 2.8 million square feet in Marin and Sonoma counties with approximately 95 properties and 825 tenants. In addition, it is the only Accredited Management Organization (AMO) that specializes in commercial management in the North Bay.
Asked what’s kept Keegan & Coppin in business for so long, company vice-president and co-founder and James Keegan responds, “We’ve built thecompany on customer service. We have the best people with the most market knowledge, which results in our being able to serve our customers better than anybody else.”
Keegan & Coppin strives to be entrepreneurial, nimble and collaborative. During the recent economic downturn, these values helped to ensure the continued financial success of the company and its clients.
For example, rather than lay off employees to reduce expenses, the company’s founders and employees focused on optimizing their know-how and in-house technology to generate income. Bank-owned properties were aggressively marketed to key investors. Creative solutions were developed to retain retail tenants who needed to downsize. In-house databases were mined and longstanding relationships tapped to locate qualified tenants for the vacant properties that flooded the market.
The result: even in the tough times, Keegan & Coppin delivered.
“We had a complete staff to support our agents and give our clients full service,” says Keegan. “We had—and continue to have—more agents on the ground and more agents with seniority than all of our competitors combined.” The quantity and quality of agents translates into market knowledge, which is what Keegan calls the company’s “core strength and differentiator.”
This knowledge comes from nearly four decades as an industry leader, as well as a continued thirst for information. The company is meticulous in collecting and managing this knowledge with technology, maintaining a sophisticated database of tenants and a state-of-the-art inventory system. It even captures best practices in a standardized form so all employees can make use of the tried and true.
Says Keegan, “We know the underlying zoning codes, the environmental and masonry issues, and all the local, state and federal laws in each market and submarket. And we have more knowledge of historical values than any other firm. Even appraisers come to us when they need comps, because we have our own set of documents and databases related to valuation.”
Essential to the company’s relationship management strategy is ongoing communication with customers and potential customers. The goal is to add value to any information about new properties or market trends. Keegan & Coppin maintains a vibrant blog, with posts written by its division managers, and uses Twitter and Facebook to announce recent sales and leasing activity. Other relevant information is communicated in person or via email, phone or in targeted direct mail pieces.
Most of Keegan & Coppin’s deals come from local businesses or from out-of-the-area brokers referring clients that want to be in the North Bay for strategic reasons. The local commercial real estate market is small and, except for the last few years, has been healthy, with a vacancy rate that held steady at a low 10 percent until the recent financial crisis. As the market rebounds, Keegan & Coppin will no doubt continue to provide the level of service that consistently earns them praise from customers…and the NorthBay biz “BEST Of” award.
Says Keegan, “It’s an honor to be recognized. We will keep working to be the best.”
