Leasing Consultant – Commercial Property (JHB) at Datafin Recruitment

ENVIRONMENT:

• A growing Property Development & Construction Group seeks a Leasing Consultant – Commercial Property, who will be responsible for sourcing, negotiating and closing leasing deals across the allocated Gauteng portfolio. The Gauteng region includes properties in the Pretoria and Joburg areas, with some assets located on the outskirts of Gauteng, such as Secunda.
• The role is primarily on-the-road and focused on building relationships with prospective tenants, brokers and other property professionals, conducting viewings, following up opportunities and converting vacancies into concluded leases.
• The ideal candidate is a self-starter, commercially minded, relationship-driven, motivated by closing deals and has a strong existing client base or network. You will also require a tertiary qualification in Finance/Property Studies or a related field or has equivalent practical experience with a minimum of 5–7 years' experience in commercial leasing, with exposure to retail, office and industrial properties.

DUTIES:

Letting, Deal Origination and Marketing –

• Actively source, pursue and convert leasing opportunities with a view to maximising occupancy of lettable area within the allocated portfolio and identify new business opportunities for vacant space and development opportunities.
• Specific functions in relation to the above will include the following:
• Introduce new tenants to the portfolio through various methods including cold calling, advertising, social media, networking and nurturing long-term relationships with key broker contacts.
• Contribute to improving the portfolio lease profile by targeting suitable tenants, longer lease terms and stronger covenant quality where possible.
• Acquire, negotiate and conclude lease agreements with new and existing brands in line with the tenancy mix and budget, at the best possible financial outcome for the company.
• Support marketing initiatives by providing market feedback, vacancy insights, broker feedback and practical recommendations based on tenant and broker engagement.
• Assist with the practical execution of marketing campaigns by providing up-to-date vacancy information, target tenant feedback and lead intelligence to the regional office team.
• Meet and liaise with property brokers and leasing agents regularly to market, advertise and fill vacant premises and developments.
• Conduct market research and analysis, including area investigations, competitor analysis, market related rentals, supply, vacancies, new developments, trends and other key market indicators.
• Understand competitor offerings and analyse market strengths and weaknesses in relation to the company’s offering.
• Build and maintain relationships with key property professionals, including brokers, letting agents, valuers and potential tenants.
• Provide complete, accurate and timely deal information to the office-based Leasing Administrator to enable preparation, collation and processing of required documentation for prospective tenants and lease agreements.
• Follow up outstanding tenant information and documentation required to progress leasing transactions efficiently.
• Carry out any other letting and marketing tasks or assignments prescribed by management from time to time.

Retail Leasing –

• Analyse each shopping centre's tenant mix and recommend new tenants, concepts or categories that could improve the overall mix, trading performance and customer appeal.
• Review shopper profiles and trading patterns to understand customer needs, buying behaviour and gaps in the current retail offering.
• Prepare and review turnover rental workings, rent-to-turnover ratios and supporting business cases to pre-filter prospective retail concepts before progressing negotiations.
• Review prospective tenants' look-and-feel presentations, store design concepts and signage proposals to ensure alignment with centre positioning, tenant mix and landlord requirements.
• Identify opportunities to generate non-GLA income, including kiosks, pop-ups, promotions, mall activations, advertising, storage and other ancillary income opportunities.

Deal Tracking and Reporting –

• Utilise the MDA property management system to record prospective tenants and create a database of leads for future business.
• Provide weekly leasing activity updates, including leads generated, viewings conducted, proposals issued, deals under negotiation and anticipated lease conclusions.
• Provide deal information required for leasing proposals and approvals by senior management.
• Provide considered views on market rentals for various units within the portfolio.

General Business –

• Maintain a good understanding of commercial property market conditions and trends and provide relevant feedback when required.
• Provide frequent activity feedback to the Regional Head and relevant internal team members.
• Communicate regularly with the in-house team on deal status and the financial impact on foregone revenue.
• Provide weekly updates on the leasing pipeline, forecast deal closures and expected contribution to vacancy reduction.
• Carry out any ad hoc duties as may be required.
• Follow all administrative processes set out by head office and complete required tracking sheets.
• Attend leasing meetings and provide deal-specific updates when required.

REQUIREMENTS:

Qualifications –

• Holds a tertiary qualification in Finance, Property Studies or a related field, or has equivalent practical experience.

Experience/Skills –

• Has 5–7 years' experience in commercial leasing, with exposure to retail, office and industrial properties.
• Has an established network of tenants, brokers and property professionals, and actively enjoys building new relationships.
• Is a confident negotiator with strong follow-through, time management and communication skills, and provides prompt feedback to all relevant parties.
• Is comfortable using technology and open to leveraging AI or automation tools to improve prospecting, follow-up and deal tracking.