CCIM Q & A
NFL Star to Commercial Real Estate Leader
A Conversation with Bill Maas , CCIM , VP , Block & Company , Inc ., Realtors
Even before retiring from the NFL in 1994 , Bill Maas , CCIM , was preparing for what he would do off the field . He was doing radio and TV spots in Kansas City and some real estate investing , which would be the springboard to his successful commercial real estate career . While it can be a difficult transition for many professional athletes once their playing days end , learn how Maas made it look easy .
When did you start playing football ? My parents didn ' t want me to play . I was in the seventh grade , and a coach asked me to join the team . I was the biggest kid in the class . The coach just kept being persistent and got a hold of my parents , and it turned out great because they were my biggest fans through all of it .
What ' s most memorable about your football career ? My teammates because while at the University of Pittsburgh , I played with icons like Dan Marino , Hugh Green , Rickey Jackson , and Chris Doleman . Then , coming to the Kansas City Chiefs , I played with Derrick Thomas , Neil Smith , and Art Still , who were great players around me at all positions . So , it was the teammates , and you remember those things . They ' re your biggest bond . It ' s all about relationships .
During your playing days , you were a radio and TV personality and dabbled in commercial real estate investing . Talk more about that . From my second year in the league , I did radio spots on Mondays and Fridays . Later in my career , I started doing television in the offseason . At the same time , I was buying commercial real estate : storage units , little strip centers , rental houses , and industrial / warehouse facilities . All this combined has just been a big part of where I ' m at right now and a big part of my life .
How did you get into commercial real estate investing ? I looked at investments back in the early 1980s . Interest rates were 19-20 percent , so it was hard to buy a house . But if you could buy a house with cash and rent it , those things were good . Then , just small things evolved . David Block ( president and principal of Block & Company ) was a prominent figure in Kansas City , and we had been friends for years . We ' d see each other out in the area and talk about deals . It was an easy transition to real estate when I was done broadcasting .
What have you learned from your football days that helped in your commercial real estate career ? Both have adversity . If you go against another player , you must find a way to compete in every play . They may be more talented in different areas , but you try to find a way to be effective . Those same things apply to commercial real estate . You go up against all kinds of obstacles between your buyers and your sellers , and so many things can come up along the way . And everybody sees it differently . So , it ' s being the intermediary , trying to bring deals together and shed light on the other side in give-and-take situations . It ' s also about being part of a team and working as a team . Many principles from the world of professional sports , particularly football , can be directly applied to the daily operations and strategies in commercial real estate .
What ' s your favorite part of your job ? Everybody wants to see big deals come across the desk , and it ' s not just for the big payday . There are so many moving parts when working with deals involving large projects , especially in development . You ' re dealing with municipalities and public finance money and different incentives . It ' s all those things , putting everything together and watching it come together , and then bang , it ' s there . It ' s a real deal . That ' s fun because what you ' re doing is similar to sports . You work all week , put together a game plan , execute the plan , and have a result at the end .
How are you utilizing technology , and how important is prop-tech to commercial real estate ? There ' s not enough time to keep up with it all , but I definitely try . We have an in-house group to discuss all
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