Leasing or selling, most commercial listings on the Peninsula get a spec sheet. Yours gets a story.
A building is more than square footage and a phone number. It has a corner, a history, a list of uses the city already allows, and a tenant or buyer out there who’s been looking for exactly that.
Whether you need the right tenant or the right buyer, I market commercial property the way I’d want my own marketed: clear facts, real creativity, and a plan for what the building becomes next. That’s the Shift.
Same kind of building. Two very different first impressions.
Tenants, buyers, and their brokers decide in seconds whether a property is worth a tour. Here’s what they usually see, and what they see when I list it.
The typical listing
Illustration · not a real property or broker- One paragraph and a few bullets
- Uses left vague: “call for details”
- A one-page flyer, if anything
- No reason to choose this building over the next one
The Shift
Real example · 1400 Munras Ave, Monterey (lease)
- A positioning line and story-led copy about the building’s character
- A plain-English guide to the uses zoning allows by right and by Use Permit
- Labeled aerials, regional map, and the assessor’s parcel map
- Demographics and traffic counts, sourced and laid out
- A 14-page broker-ready OM, free to download
- Selling? The same treatment, aimed at buyers: investor and owner-user positioning, plus the financials
The “typical listing” is a generic illustration made for this page. It doesn’t depict any actual property, listing, or brokerage.
What every listing gets, lease or sale
No mystery, no upsell. The same standard package either way, plus the numbers and positioning buyers need when you sell.
Story-led copy
I find what makes the building rare (the ceiling, the corner, the veranda) and lead with it, so it’s remembered after the tour by a tenant or a buyer.
Permitted-use guide
What the zoning allows by right and what needs a Use Permit, in plain English, so the right tenants and buyers see themselves there, and see the upside.
Labeled aerials & parcel map
Site, neighborhood, and regional views with clear labels, plus the assessor’s map. Context at a glance.
Demographics & traffic
Population, income, daytime population, and traffic counts, laid out simply for the decision-makers.
Broker-ready OM
A designed offering memorandum that tenant reps and buyer’s brokers can forward to their clients as-is, with no gate and no hoops.
A clear co-op line
Cooperating brokers are welcome, and the page says so. Tenant reps and buyer’s brokers bring the deal, so I make it easy for them.
Owner-user or investor? Both.
I position the building for both audiences: the business that wants its own address, and the investor who wants the return.
Investor-ready financials
Rent roll, operating expenses, and income summary, laid out clearly from your records and checked with you before anything goes out.
A dedicated property website, plus syndication
Your building gets its own page on my site with photos, floor plans, and every document in one place. The listing also goes out on the major commercial listing platforms, so it reaches beyond my own audience.
Here’s what that looks like for a real building
1400 Munras is a lease listing. A sale gets the same treatment, aimed at buyers: an OM built for investors and owner-users, the financials laid out plainly, and the zoning upside spelled out.
Answer the first question before it’s asked.
“Can I actually use it for my business?” is the first thing a medical group, school, or studio wants to know, whether they’re leasing or buying. The page answers it, sorted into what’s allowed outright and what needs a Use Permit, with a link back to the city code.
For a buyer, the same guide shows the upside: what else the property could become. Fewer dead-end calls for you. More of the right ones.
Show the place, not just the parcel.
Labeled aerials put the building in context: the bay, downtown, the shopping center next door, the highway on-ramp. Demographics and traffic counts sit right beside them.
A tenant or buyer from out of the area gets the whole picture before they ever drive by.
An OM a tenant rep or buyer’s broker is glad to forward.
The offering memorandum is 14 designed pages: the opportunity, property details, floor plans, photos, zoning, location, maps, and terms. Every page carries my name, Compass, and license number.
For a sale, it adds what buyers look for: an investment summary, the rent roll and operating numbers (from your records, verified with you), and positioning for owner-users and investors.
It’s free to download because the easier it is to share, the more people see your building.
Simple, and out in the open
Walk it together
I tour the building with you and pick up on the details that are rare and worth leading with.
A straight read
I tell you who I think the likely tenants or buyers are, whether leasing or selling fits your goals better, what the market looks like, and what I’d do if it were mine.
Build the story
Photos, copy, permitted-use guide, maps, data, OM (with financials for a sale), and property website, ready for you to review before launch.
Launch & report
Syndication, broker outreach, and regular updates on activity, so you always know where things stand.
A beautiful page only works if people find it. So every commercial listing I take is also syndicated to the major commercial listing platforms where tenant reps, buyers, and investors search, and I reach out to those brokers directly.
The big firms have bigger networks. I won’t pretend otherwise. What I offer is a building that stands out once it’s found, and an advisor who picks up the phone.
[Outcome headline, e.g. “Leased in [X] days” or “Sold in [X] days”]
[Real stats only: days on market, inquiries, tours. Owner-approved.]
“[Owner quote, verbatim, with written permission]”[Name, title, property]
Tell me about your building.
Vacant space, a lease coming up, thinking about selling, or a listing that’s been sitting? Send me the basics. I’ll take an honest look and tell you what I’d do, even if the answer is “stay the course.”
Prefer to talk? Book a call or text me at 831-747-0310.
— Jonathan Balog
Owner inquiry
Two minutes. I’ll reply personally.
Private and no obligation. Your information stays with me.
Thanks, got it.
I’ll look up your building, check how it’s positioned today, and get back to you personally within one business day with a few honest thoughts, whether that’s leasing, selling, or weighing both.
Want to talk sooner? Book a call or text 831-747-0310.
Glad you’re here. Jonathan
Jonathan Balog, Broker Associate | Compass | DRE# 01980970
Jonathan Balog, Broker Associate | Compass | DRE# 01980970
Compass is a real estate broker licensed by the State of California and abides by Equal Housing Opportunity laws. License Number 01527235. Property shown with the owner’s permission. Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. If your property is currently listed with another broker, this is not a solicitation.