★ #1 RE/MAX Commercial Broker in Illinois — 2022 · 2024 · 2025

Lease Your Commercial Building With Full-Market Exposure and Tenant Screening

Vacant commercial space costs landlords money every month — and the wrong tenant can cost even more. Jason Bitton helps property owners in Lake County, the North Shore, and the Chicago suburbs lease retail, office, industrial, and mixed-use space with strategic pricing, professional listing exposure, qualified tenant outreach, careful screening, and lease terms designed to protect long-term income.

Why It Matters

Vacancy Is Expensive. A Bad Tenant Is Worse.

Leasing commercial space comes down to managing two risks at once. Vacancy bleeds rent, taxes, insurance, and maintenance every month a space sits dark — and a building that lingers on the market starts to look like there’s something wrong with it. But the wrong tenant is the more expensive mistake: weak finances that turn into missed rent, a use that clashes with zoning or your other tenants, an unrealistic buildout, or a lease with no guaranty and no teeth. Jason’s job is to fill the space fast — with a tenant who pays, fits, and stays.

Step One — Rent Positioning

Price the Space to Lease — and Protect the Real Return

Set the rent too aggressively and the space can sit while you absorb carrying costs; set it too low and you lock in below-market income for years. The right strategy positions the space at a rent that attracts qualified tenants while protecting the owner’s long-term return. The right number comes from real local comps for your property type and submarket, adjusted for condition, location, and the lease structure you offer. Jason positions the rent — and the deal terms around it — so it draws qualified interest quickly without leaving money on the table.

Your real return is decided by more than the headline rent. Jason helps position each part of the deal so the lease is marketable without quietly giving away value:

Base rent & lease structure

The asking rent — and whether the lease is triple-net (NNN), modified gross, or full-service gross, which determines how taxes, insurance, maintenance, and operating expenses are handled.

Effective rent

The true economics after concessions, abatements, tenant improvements, escalations, and term are factored in. A higher headline rent isn’t a better deal if the structure gives too much away.

Tenant-improvement exposure

Any landlord contribution to buildout is tied to tenant strength, term, rent, and the long-term value added to the building — not treated as an open-ended concession.

Free rent & abatement

Free rent can help secure a strong tenant, but it’s used carefully — when it closes a better deal, not when it quietly erases the owner’s return.

Annual escalations

Scheduled increases protect income over a multi-year lease and keep the rent from falling behind the market.

Lease term & security

The right term balances stability, income, tenant quality, and flexibility — alongside deposits, guaranties, and other protections that support the landlord’s position.

The goal is simple: price the space to attract the right tenants, structure the lease to protect your income, and avoid trading long-term value for short-term activity.

Step Two — Tenant Screening

Screen Who Actually Signs

Getting interest is easy. Putting the right tenant in your building is what protects your income for years. Before recommending a tenant, Jason evaluates:

Financial strength — can they carry the rent through the full term? Financials, banking, and business history.

Use compatibility — does their business fit your building and your other tenants?

Zoning conformance — is the use permitted as-of-right, or will it need a variance or special-use approval?

Buildout risk — is the space plan realistic, and who’s paying for it?

Personal guaranty — a personal or corporate guaranty that puts real accountability behind the lease.

Security deposit — a deposit sized to the risk, with last-month or additional security where it’s warranted.

A vacancy you fill with a shaky tenant isn’t solved — it’s postponed. Jason screens to avoid the re-lease you’d otherwise be doing in eighteen months. What every landlord should ask before accepting a tenant →

Step Three — Marketing Exposure

Put It in Front of Every Qualified Tenant

Your tenant is out there — the question is whether your listing reaches them before they sign somewhere else. Every space Jason represents gets continuous, full-market exposure:

LoopNet (active premium account) and CoStar — where tenants, tenant reps, and brokers search and research.

Crexi Pro and the commercial MLS, plus private broker networks.

Direct outreach to Jason’s database of active tenants, tenant-rep brokers, franchise operators, and local businesses.

Professional photography, video, and signage — and a real listing page, not a phone snapshot.

And the exposure stays on until the space is leased. Some brokers limit platform exposure to cut their own costs; Jason keeps full visibility running so your space reaches the whole tenant pool, not a fraction of it. Where commercial listings actually get seen: CoStar vs. LoopNet vs. Crexi →

Step Four — Municipal & Zoning Help

Clear the Village, Zoning, and Permitting Hurdles

This is where a lot of commercial leases stall — and where Jason’s experience genuinely separates him. A tenant’s use may be permitted as-of-right, or it may need a special- or conditional-use approval, a zoning confirmation, occupancy and sign permits, and a building or occupancy inspection before they can open. Jason works directly with village staff, building departments, and inspectors across Lake County and the suburbs to move a tenant’s use through approval — so a promising lease doesn’t die in a permitting office. If your building has a tricky permitted-use question, or a tenant whose concept needs municipal sign-off, that’s a problem Jason has solved before. Common zoning mistakes that delay openings →

What Owners Say

Trusted by Commercial Owners

★★★★★

“Jason’s been a huge asset in our commercial real estate deals. He’s quick, professional, and detail oriented. Highly recommend him!”

— via Google
★★★★★

“Jason is very knowledgeable and always available to answer questions and concerns. His positive attitude reassures you that he’ll do his best to get positive results.”

— via Google
Read all 14 five-star reviews on Google →
Common Questions

Leasing Out Commercial Space

How much rent can I get for my commercial building?

Commercial rent is set by local comparable lease rates for your property type and submarket, then adjusted for condition, location, and lease structure (NNN vs. gross), tenant improvements, free rent, escalations, and term. The headline rate is only part of the return — the structure around it often matters more. Jason will give you a market-based rent range and the deal terms to go with it.

What’s the difference between NNN and gross rent for a landlord?

Under a triple-net (NNN) lease the tenant pays the property taxes, insurance, and common-area maintenance on top of base rent, so the landlord’s income is more predictable. Under a gross lease the landlord covers those expenses out of a higher base rent and absorbs increases. NNN shifts expense risk to the tenant; gross simplifies things for the tenant but puts cost inflation on the owner. The right choice depends on the property, the tenant, and the market.

How do you screen a commercial tenant?

Jason evaluates a prospective tenant’s financial strength, use compatibility with your zoning and building, buildout plan and who funds it, operating track record, and the guaranty and deposit they’ll provide. The goal is a tenant who can carry the rent for the full term and whose use won’t create zoning or neighbor problems — because a poorly screened tenant turns into a vacancy you have to solve twice.

Should I require a personal guaranty from a commercial tenant?

In most cases, yes. A personal (or corporate) guaranty is one of the simplest ways to confirm a tenant is serious and to protect your income if their business hits trouble — it puts real accountability behind the lease. Jason negotiates for guaranties and the other landlord-protective terms that keep your investment secure.

How long does it take to lease a commercial space?

It varies with rate, location, condition, and how broadly the space is exposed, and any required zoning or permitting approval can add time. Correct pricing and complete, continuous market exposure are the two biggest levers for leasing faster.

What if a tenant’s use needs special zoning approval?

That’s common, and it’s navigable. Many commercial uses require a special- or conditional-use permit, zoning confirmation, or occupancy and sign permits before a tenant can open. Jason works directly with villages, building departments, and inspectors across the Chicago suburbs to move a tenant’s use through approval, so the lease actually gets to opening day.

Have a Building to Lease? Find Out Who Your Tenant Is.

Send Jason the basics of your building and he’ll tell you the likely tenant pool, a market rent range, and how to get it leased — fast, and to a tenant who fits.

Send Me Your Building → (847) 858-2909
Or email Jason@JasonCRE.com