Straight answers for business owners in Ventura and Santa Barbara County, from people who only ever sit on your side of the table.
Pick where you are right now. Each path starts with the questions people in that spot ask first.
Budgets, square footage, timelines, and who actually works for you.
What’s negotiable, what to push back on, and what the numbers really mean.
Renewals, rising CAM charges, new California protections, and ways out.
Grouped by where you are in the process. Every answer starts short, then goes deeper.
How do I start looking for commercial space for my business? How much commercial space do I need?
How is commercial rent quoted in California? What’s the difference between NNN, gross, and modified gross leases?
Where do I find commercial space for lease? What should I look for when touring commercial space?
Is a commercial lease negotiable? What is a letter of intent (LOI) for a commercial lease?
What is SB 1103 and does it protect my business? Should I have an attorney review my commercial lease?
What should restaurant owners look for when leasing commercial space? What should retail businesses look for in a commercial lease?
The six questions we hear most, answered in a few sentences.
In most commercial lease deals, a tenant representative costs the tenant nothing. The landlord pays the leasing commission, which is typically already budgeted into the listing and split between the landlord’s broker and the tenant’s broker.
In a NNN (triple net) lease, you pay base rent plus your share of property taxes, insurance, and common area maintenance. In a full service gross lease, those costs are included in the rent. A modified gross lease splits them, with some expenses included and others billed to you.
A TI allowance is money the landlord contributes toward building out your space, usually quoted per square foot. The amount depends on lease term, your credit, the space’s condition, and the market. Longer terms and stronger tenants typically earn larger allowances, and second-generation spaces usually get less.
Many landlords request a personal guarantee from small business owners, especially newer businesses, but the scope is negotiable. Alternatives include a guarantee capped at a set dollar amount or number of months, a guarantee that burns off after a period of on-time payments, a larger deposit, or a letter of credit.
SB 1103, California’s Commercial Tenant Protection Act, took effect January 1, 2025. It gives qualified commercial tenants certain rights around operating cost charges, rent increase notices, lease translation, and termination notices. You must notify the landlord in writing that you qualify.
Yes. Nearly every commercial lease term is negotiable, including rent, annual increases, free rent, tenant improvement allowance, lease length, renewal options, personal guarantees, repair responsibilities, signage, use rights, and exit options. How much you can negotiate depends on market conditions, vacancy time, and your financial strength.
Plain-English breakdowns of the clauses that decide your bottom line.
Who qualifies for California’s small commercial tenant protections, and how to claim them.
How to keep a competitor from opening two doors down in your own center.
A short video lesson on what a space really costs each month.
Every term you will see in a lease, defined.
What your type of business needs from a space, and the lease terms that protect it.
Industry checklists for leasing commercial space: restaurants, retail, medical and dental, office, industrial, fitness, salons, childcare, auto, event venues, churches, and nonprofits.
What SB 1103 means for small California businesses, when to hire an attorney, what financials landlords ask for, and how new businesses get approved.
Is a commercial lease negotiable? LOIs, TI allowance, free rent, lease term, options, personal guarantees, exclusives, subleasing, repairs, and exit options.
Or call (805) 203-6365 | 472 E Santa Clara Street, Ventura, CA
