Toronto Industrial Broker — Industrial Leasing, Sales, and Tenant Representation Across the GTA
Managing Partner at Lennard Commercial Realty | CoStar Power Broker | 15+ years GTA industrial transactions
I'm Michael Law, a Toronto industrial real estate broker and Managing Partner at Lennard Commercial Realty. Since 2011, I've represented industrial tenants and landlords across the Greater Toronto Area on transactions ranging from 5,000 square foot multi-tenant units to over 500,000 square feet of institutional distribution space. My practice focuses on the GTA West industrial corridor — Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Milton, Caledon, North York, Etobicoke, and Scarborough — with deep expertise in distribution centres, warehouses, manufacturing facilities, cold storage, food-grade processing, and outside storage / contractor yards. If you're an occupier evaluating a lease or purchase, a landlord positioning a building for the market, or an investor underwriting an industrial acquisition in the GTA, this page is the starting point for understanding how I work and why clients hire me.
What an industrial broker actually does for you in Toronto
A Toronto industrial broker is the commercial real estate professional who represents either the tenant/buyer or the landlord/seller in industrial property transactions. The job is fundamentally different from residential brokerage, retail brokerage, or office brokerage — industrial deals are larger, longer-tenor, and more technically demanding. A 100,000 square foot distribution centre lease in Milton involves clear height, truck court depth, dock door ratios, ESFR sprinkler systems, electrical capacity, zoning, environmental conditions, and 7-10 year forward financial commitments running into the tens of millions of dollars. The broker's job is to make sure the client wins on every one of those dimensions.
On the tenant representation side, I work exclusively for the occupier — never the landlord on the same deal — to find space that fits the operation, negotiate the commercial terms (net rent, TMI, free rent, tenant improvement allowance, escalations, renewal options, expansion rights, termination rights, sublease and assignment language), and project-manage the build-out through to occupancy. On the landlord side, I market vacant or upcoming-vacant industrial space, qualify prospective tenants on covenant and operational fit, and run the lease negotiation to maximize the landlord's net effective rent over the term while delivering a tenant the landlord wants in the building.
The Toronto industrial market is institutional. Most Class-A product is owned by Oxford Properties, Prologis, GWL Realty Advisors, KingSett Capital, Crestpoint, Skyline, Maple Reinders, and Dream Industrial REIT — sophisticated counterparties with experienced leasing teams. Going into those negotiations without a broker who knows the playbook leaves money and operational flexibility on the table on every deal.
Submarkets and property types I cover in the GTA
My practice covers the full GTA industrial market with particular depth in:
GTA West (highest activity volume):
- Mississauga — the largest industrial inventory in the GTA, every product type from multi-tenant small bay to 500,000+ SF distribution; current net rents $15-19/SF depending on submarket and clear height
- Brampton — strong logistics and 3PL submarket along Highway 410 corridor, $15-17/SF for modern product
- Milton — institutional Class-A distribution park (James Snow Business Park), $16-19/SF for 36-40 foot clear product
- Vaughan — top-tier Class-A distribution and food production, $16-19/SF
- Caledon — emerging large-format submarket, more contiguous land, $14-17/SF
- Oakville and Burlington — smaller industrial profile, mixed with office/flex
Toronto core:
- North York — older industrial inventory along Steeles, Finch, Dufferin corridors, infill redevelopment opportunities
- Etobicoke — Airport-area submarket, premium for proximity to Pearson cargo
- Scarborough — large-bay and outside storage product along Markham Road and Sheppard
Property types:
- Distribution centres (50,000-1,000,000+ SF, 32-40 foot clear, ESFR sprinklered)
- Warehouses for lease (multi-tenant 5,000-50,000 SF, 18-28 foot clear)
- Manufacturing facilities (heavy power, crane-served, food-grade, cold storage)
- Truck terminals and last-mile distribution
- Outside storage / contractor yards (E1, E2, M2 zoning)
- Owner-occupied industrial sales and sale-leasebacks
- Industrial land for development and build-to-suit
When you should hire an industrial broker vs. go direct
Some tenants think they can save money by approaching landlords directly. In residential, that math sometimes works. In Toronto industrial real estate, it almost never does. Here is the honest answer to when you should and shouldn't hire a broker:
Hire a broker if:
- You are leasing or buying any space over 10,000 square feet
- Your annual industrial real estate spend is over $200,000 in net rent plus TMI
- You are signing a lease term over 3 years
- You are taking on a build-to-suit, owner-occupied purchase, or sale-leaseback
- You operate in a specialized property type (cold storage, food-grade, manufacturing, outside storage)
- The lease has any non-standard terms — expansion rights, termination rights, sublease language, options to purchase
You can probably go direct if:
- You are taking a 1-3 year storage lease under 5,000 square feet on a take-it-or-leave-it deal
- Your operation is genuinely commodity-fit for the building and you have no negotiating leverage
Tenant representation in Toronto industrial is almost always paid by the landlord through the listing commission split, not by the tenant. There is no out-of-pocket cost to the tenant for hiring a broker on the vast majority of deals. The economics for going direct are not "save the commission" — the landlord pays the commission regardless of whether you have a broker. The real question is whether you negotiate harder with a broker or without one. After 15 years and hundreds of GTA industrial deals, I can tell you with confidence the broker pays for themselves several times over on every transaction above the size threshold.
What you should expect a Toronto industrial broker to actually deliver
The minimum bar for competent tenant representation in Toronto industrial:
- Comprehensive market survey — every building that fits your spec across every submarket on your list, including off-market and pre-listing inventory that comes through broker networks
- Submarket analysis — current vacancy, availability, rent comps, demand pipeline, and 12-24 month forecast for each submarket on your shortlist
- Building tours coordinated and structured — same-day or next-day tours, with information packages prepared in advance and your operational priorities mapped against each option
- Term sheet negotiation across all major commercial terms — net rent, TMI, free rent, TI allowance, escalations, security deposit, renewal options, expansion rights, termination rights, assignment and sublease provisions, parking and trailer storage ratios
- Letter of intent execution — a binding LOI that protects your position before legal documents are drafted
- Lease document negotiation — working alongside your real estate counsel to push back on landlord-favourable boilerplate
- Build-out coordination through occupancy — managing the landlord's work, your TI work, and the operational handoff
For landlord representation:
- Marketing strategy and execution — broker network, MLS, LoopNet, social, direct outreach to active tenants in your size band
- Tenant qualification — covenant review, operational fit, leasehold improvement risk
- Multi-offer negotiation — running parallel negotiations with multiple qualified tenants to maximize net effective rent
- Lease execution and tenant onboarding
If your current broker is not doing all of the above, you should be looking for a new broker.
Credentials and recognition
- Managing Partner, Lennard Commercial Realty — the third-largest and fastest-growing commercial real estate brokerage in Canada
- CoStar Power Broker (multi-year recognition for top GTA industrial transaction volume)
- Licensed by the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO)
- Member of NAIOP (Commercial Real Estate Development Association) and the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB)
- 15+ years of GTA industrial transaction experience
- Specialized expertise in GTA West industrial submarkets (Mississauga, Brampton, Milton, Vaughan, Caledon)
How to engage
If you are evaluating an industrial transaction in the GTA — lease, purchase, sale-leaseback, build-to-suit, or disposition — the first conversation is always a no-cost, no-obligation 30-minute call to understand your operation, your timeline, and your decision criteria. From there, I'll either confirm that I'm the right broker for your transaction or refer you to someone better suited if your needs fall outside my practice area.
Email: mlaw@lennard.com Phone: (416) 569-6722 Office: Lennard Commercial Realty — Toronto
Michael Law
Industrial Real Estate Broker, Managing Partner
Lennard Commercial Realty · RECO #4874682
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Frequently asked questions
How much does an industrial broker charge in Toronto?
Industrial broker commissions in Toronto are paid by the landlord on lease transactions, typically calculated as a percentage of the total lease value over the initial term. The standard structure is 4-5% of the first year's net rent, 3-4% of years 2-5, and 1.5-2% of years 6-10, split between the listing broker and the tenant's broker. On purchase transactions, commissions are typically 2-4% of the purchase price, paid by the seller. Tenants and buyers almost never pay out-of-pocket broker fees in Toronto industrial real estate. The landlord pays the same commission whether the tenant brings a broker or not, so there is no economic reason for a tenant to go without representation.
What's the difference between a tenant rep and a landlord rep industrial broker?
A tenant rep (or buyer rep) broker exclusively represents the occupier — the company leasing or buying the space — and has a fiduciary duty to negotiate the best possible commercial terms for that client. A landlord rep (or listing) broker represents the building owner and works to maximize net effective rent, minimize free rent and tenant improvement allowance, and qualify the tenant on covenant. The two roles are structurally opposite. Many Toronto industrial brokers handle both, but on any given transaction you should have a broker representing only one side of the deal — never a dual agency situation where the same broker claims to represent both parties.
When should I hire an industrial broker versus contacting the landlord directly?
Hire a broker for any transaction over 10,000 square feet, any lease term over 3 years, any annual rent commitment over $200,000, or any specialized property type (cold storage, food-grade, manufacturing, build-to-suit). The landlord pays the same commission either way, so going direct doesn't save you money — it just means you negotiate without market data, comp evidence, or experience pushing back on landlord-favourable lease terms. The only situations where going direct makes economic sense are small short-term storage leases under 5,000 square feet where the deal is essentially take-it-or-leave-it.
What submarkets do you cover in Toronto?
My practice covers the full Greater Toronto Area industrial market, with primary focus on the GTA West corridor — Mississauga, Brampton, Milton, Vaughan, Caledon, Oakville, and Burlington — and the Toronto core submarkets of North York, Etobicoke, and Scarborough. I work across all industrial property types (distribution centres, warehouses, manufacturing, cold storage, outside storage, truck terminals) and all transaction types (leasing, sales, sale-leasebacks, build-to-suit, dispositions).
What size of industrial deals do you typically handle?
My practice covers industrial transactions from 5,000 square feet for multi-tenant small bay leases up to 500,000+ square feet for institutional distribution and manufacturing facilities. The sweet spot for tenant representation is 20,000-200,000 square feet, where the commercial terms are most negotiable and the value of professional representation is highest. Below 5,000 SF the deals tend to be commodity-fit and high-volume; above 500,000 SF the deals are typically negotiated team-on-team with institutional landlords.
How long does it take to find and lease industrial space in Toronto?
A typical Toronto industrial lease transaction runs 4-9 months from broker engagement to occupancy, depending on size and complexity. Small-bay multi-tenant deals (under 25,000 SF) can close in 60-90 days if the right space is available. Larger Class-A leases (50,000-200,000 SF) typically take 4-6 months including market survey, tours, LOI negotiation, lease document negotiation, and tenant improvement build-out. Build-to-suit projects run 12-24 months from site selection through occupancy. The biggest variable is tenant improvement scope — a vanilla move-in is much faster than a heavy buildout requiring electrical upgrades, racking installation, or specialized refrigeration.
What's the current state of the Toronto industrial market in 2026?
As of Q1 2026, the GTA industrial market has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Vacancy sits around 4.1% with availability at 5.8% — historically tight but no longer the under-1% vacancy of 2022. Average net rents are $16.36 per square foot across the GTA, with submarket variation from $14-15 in Caledon and Brampton to $17-19 in Mississauga, Vaughan, and Milton for Class-A product. Demand is led by 3PL/logistics, e-commerce fulfillment, food production, and manufacturing reshoring. Build-to-suit activity has resumed but remains below peak levels. For occupiers, 2026 is the best leasing environment since 2020 — more options, more negotiable terms, and meaningful free rent and tenant improvement allowance.
Why hire Michael Law specifically as your Toronto industrial broker?
Three reasons. First, focused practice — I work exclusively on GTA industrial real estate, not retail, office, residential, or any other product type. Every conversation, comp, and relationship in my network is industrial-specific. Second, Lennard Commercial Realty platform — Lennard is the third-largest commercial real estate brokerage in Canada and the largest independent. Lennard's institutional research, marketing infrastructure, and broker network are equal to or better than the major franchise brokerages. Third, GTA West specialization — my deal flow is concentrated in Mississauga, Brampton, Milton, Vaughan, and Caledon, which means I have current, granular market intelligence on every submarket and most of the active landlords in that geography. If your transaction is in the GTA West industrial corridor, there are very few brokers with deeper current data than I have.