Texas pays about $10 million a month to lease space around the state. Scribcor's compensation will come from commissions received from the state when space is leased, Molina says. The commission is not to exceed 4%. No commissions will be paid on renewals unless significant savings are realized.

Joe Bob McCartt, president and COO of Scribcor Texas, tells GlobeSt.com that he hopes to save the state about 15% of its current leasing costs. He estimates that Scribcor will gross between $1.7 million to $1.9 million in the contract's first year.

McCartt, a 30-year veteran of commercial real estate in Texas, says brokers found the state's previous leasing process so hard to work with that many would decline to get involved. One broker, McCartt says, told him that he added $4 per sf to the rent before even talking to the state.

The legislature made changes that allow negotiation between the state's broker and the building owner. McCartt says he brought the idea of outsourcing to the General Services Commission before the process was changed.

Scribcor Texas is putting together a network of local brokers in each of the more than 300 towns and cities where the state leases space. "We're a little bit better than halfway through it," McCartt says. Now that the contract has been signed, he'll work to fill out the network. "It's only through local brokers and local brokers' knowledge of the market" that the best deals can be found, he says. "A lot of deals don't have signs in front of the buildings."

McCartt says Scribcor Texas is affiliated with Chicago-based Scribcor Leasing Services. McCartt owns half the company and Scribcor, the other half. His partner is Gilbert Fell, a Scribcor executive.