Andres Aiza is a Senior Associate at Alpine Partners, a Houston-based industrial real estate firm focused on investment sales and project leasing. Born and raised in Houston, he built his career in one of the country’s most active industrial markets, working across property owner representation, tenant advisory, and deal structuring for clients that range from local operators to Fortune 500 companies. A graduate of the University of Houston’s C.T. Bauer College of Business, Aiza brings bilingual fluency in English and Spanish to a diverse client base across the Greater Houston corridor. Before commercial real estate, he spent several years in food manufacturing and distribution, an experience that shaped how he thinks about the operational side of the industries his clients work in. He gives to Heroes for Children, a nonprofit supporting children and families affected by cancer, and has volunteered through Loaves and Fishes in Houston.
Andres Aiza on Success in Industrial Real Estate
How do you define success in your work?
Success in brokerage is not always measured by the size of the deal. For me, it comes down to whether my client made the right decision for their property or their business. I can close a large transaction and have it feel hollow if the structure was not right for the owner. And I have closed smaller deals that felt genuinely satisfying because every part of it made sense for everyone involved. That alignment is what I am working toward every time.
Was there a turning point that shaped how you approach your work?
Before I was in real estate, I worked in food manufacturing and distribution. That experience gave me a different lens. I understood how companies use industrial space, what their operational priorities are, and how quickly requirements can change. When I got into brokerage, I was not just looking at a building — I was thinking about how that building actually functions for the business inside it. That perspective changed how I advise clients.
What does the early part of your career teach you that you carry now?
It taught me that no one hands you credibility in a market like Houston. You have to earn it by knowing the product, knowing the people, and showing up consistently. The relationships I built in the first few years of my career are still active today. That does not happen unless you made the right impressions early.
How do you handle deals that become difficult?
Most deals have a moment where something unexpected surfaces. A title issue, a change in a tenant’s operational requirements, a financing complication. I learned early that the broker’s job in those moments is not to panic — it is to work the problem. I try to stay calm, figure out what options exist, and present those options clearly to my client. Most of the time, there is a path forward. You just have to be willing to find it.
What role does failure play in how you think about success?
Every deal that does not close teaches you something. Maybe the pricing strategy was off, or the client’s timeline did not match market conditions. I take those lessons seriously and apply them to the next transaction. I do not dwell on it, but I do not dismiss it either. The brokers who grow are the ones who are honest with themselves about what went wrong.
What habits keep you effective over the long run?
Staying close to the market. Reading activity, watching what moves and what sits, understanding which submarkets are tightening. Houston’s industrial landscape shifts, and the brokers who fall behind are usually the ones who stop paying attention to the data. I also stay in contact with my clients between transactions, not just when there is a deal on the table. Those relationships are what generate the next opportunity.
How does being bilingual affect the work?
It opens doors that would otherwise stay closed. A significant portion of Houston’s industrial property owners and investors conduct their most important conversations in Spanish. If I can meet them in their own language, the trust builds faster. They know I am not just going through a translator — I actually understand what they are saying. That matters a great deal in a relationship-driven business.
What would you tell someone early in their commercial real estate career?
Learn the market before you worry about the commission. The brokers who build lasting careers in this business are the ones who became genuine experts in a specific product type and geography. Generalists struggle. Specialists with deep local knowledge find their footing and hold it.