Answer extracted from the The Crexi Commercial Real Estate Podcast — listen to the full episode below.
What volume metrics define a high-performing year in third-party retail leasing?
A three-person retail leasing team closing 95 leases annually across 36 shopping centers—averaging roughly two to three tenants per center—represents solid third-party performance in the Texas market. This is a team figure: no individual broker can sustain 95 leases alone, and the focus now shifts to volume goals for 2026 rather than past metrics.
Understanding what "high performance" means in third-party retail leasing requires separating team output from individual capacity. As Tuva Patoli explains in the episode, her leasing operation at Huntington Properties operates with three people: herself, a Vice President of Leasing, and one associate. The three roles allow volume to compound across the portfolio without overwhelming any single broker.
Team structure enables sustainable volume
The reality of hitting 95 leases annually is not about one person grinding through transactions. Instead, it reflects a deliberate division of labor where each team member carries leasing responsibilities across the 36 represented shopping centers. This structure prevents burnout and ensures quality follow-through on each deal, which is critical in tenant placement and lease structuring.
Breaking the math down: 95 leases across 36 centers means approximately 2.6 leases per center per year. This spacing gives the team room to focus on both landlord and tenant needs without rushing negotiations. A point detailed in this podcast, Patoli's approach emphasizes understanding how leasing drives retail asset value—meaning quality and strategic fit matter as much as sheer lease count.
"I always like to put on my landlord hat so I sometimes I don't act like I'm just a broker and I act like I'm a landlord and I own this property."
Tuva Patoli — Senior Retail Specialist at Huntington Properties. After starting in commercial real estate at age 22 and spending her first eight months with zero income, Patoli built expertise in identifying emerging submarkets and tenant mix strategies across Houston and Dallas. Her dual focus on landlord and tenant representation, combined with extensive canvassing and market knowledge, enabled her to scale a third-party retail leasing practice from zero to 36 represented shopping centers in just over four years.
The philosophy above reveals why raw lease counts alone don't capture performance: Patoli thinks like a landlord first, which means prioritizing asset performance and tenant longevity over transaction velocity. This mindset filters which leases the team pursues and how hard they negotiate on terms.
For brokers benchmarking their own output against 95 leases as a third-party standard, the full conversation on the Crexi podcast covers what 2026 volume goals look like and how Patoli plans to build on this foundation rather than simply repeat last year's numbers.
Key takeaways
- 95 leases in a year is a team metric, not an individual achievement—requiring at least three dedicated roles to execute sustainably.
- Averaging 2–3 leases per center annually across 36 shopping centers allows time for quality negotiations and strategic tenant placement.
- High performance in third-party retail leasing prioritizes asset fit and landlord value over raw transaction count.
See also
How has a retail specialist's daily responsibilities evolved from entry-level leasing to managing a team?
Daily work centers on consistency across the Texas market, primarily in Houston and Dallas, split roughly 75% landlord representation and 25% tenant representation. Managing a team means ensuring that balance holds across all three people while maintaining close market relationships.
How can excessive pressure from one party in a real estate negotiation compromise the deal?
When brokers relay landlord pressure directly to tenants, it can damage relationships and kill deals. Early in her career, Tuva learned the hard way that intermediaries must filter demands thoughtfully, not transmit them raw.
What role does tenant canvassing play in building a retail leasing practice from scratch?
Tenant canvassing is recommended as the starting point for new brokers. When canvassing tenants, the broker is the expert teaching them about market conditions and emerging spaces—a foundation that leads to stronger relationships and deal flow later.