Commercial and residential real estate are two different animals. Most states define residential real estate as buildings which contain one-to-four living units while commercial real estate is any real estate used for commerce. Commerce is defined as the interchange of goods, products, services or commodities which are bought and sold.
The main classifications of commercial real estate are:
- Apartments (5 or more units) also called Multifamily
- Retail
- Office
- Industrial
- Lodging & Hospitality
- Restaurants
- Specialty
There are many subcategories of these main classifications. Some are intimidated by commercial real estate and think they don’t know enough to invest in it but commercial real estate can be big or small, complicated or simple. Don’t be afraid to invest in commercial real estate with someone who knows what they’re doing. It can be very lucrative!