When we've got a suite to fill, the first question is almost always "who's looking?" Call the brokers, find out which practices are in the market, work that list. That's how it's always worked, and it's not crazy — the tenants actively looking are the ones who can actually sign.

But it means the tenant you end up with is mostly a function of timing. You get whoever happened to be in the market that quarter.

The question I've gotten more interested in is the other one: what is this trade area actually short of? Not what's available and not who's looking — what kind of practice could this location support that isn't here yet.

It's a harder question, and most of us don't ask it, because the answer takes real work and the broker list is sitting right there. But the two questions produce different tenants. One gives you whoever was in the market. The other gives you a practice with a reason to be in that specific building.

For owners here leasing commercial space — do you ever start from what a market is missing, or is that a luxury when you've got vacancy to cover? Curious whether anyone's made it work without it just becoming a slower path to the same tenant.