Small business space, found by a former business owner
I signed my own commercial lease and ran a shop for 7 years. Now I sit on your side of the table.
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Commercial leases speak a different language. Let's translate.
My first commercial lease scared me. The broker talked in acronyms. The landlord talked in dollars per square foot. Nobody talked in plain English. So here it is, the translation I wish someone had handed me.
| The term | What it actually means |
|---|---|
| NNN lease triple net | You pay base rent plus three extras: property taxes, building insurance, and common area maintenance. The most common retail lease type by far. |
| CAM charges | Common Area Maintenance. Your share of the parking lot, landscaping, lighting, and shared upkeep. It changes year to year, so ask for the history. |
| Gross lease | One number covers everything. Simpler, but the landlord bakes the extras into the rent. Compare the all-in cost, not the label. |
| LOI | Letter of Intent. The short, mostly non-binding document where you and the landlord agree on the big terms before lawyers write the lease. |
| Build-out | The work that turns an empty box into your business. Sometimes the landlord contributes. That contribution is negotiable, and I negotiate it. |
What "$30 per square foot" means in real dollars.
Commercial rent is quoted per square foot per year. That trips up almost every first-time tenant, because your brain wants a monthly number.
Here's the conversion. Say a space is 2,000 square feet at $30 per square foot per year. Multiply: $60,000 a year. Divide by 12: $5,000 a month. That's before CAM, taxes, insurance, and utilities.
On a triple net lease, those extras can add several dollars per square foot on top. Always run the all-in number before you fall in love with a space. I run it with you, line by line.
I was the tenant for 7 years.
Before real estate, I owned a vintage retail shop. Seven years. Voted Best in City 6 of those 7. I negotiated every piece of inventory that came through my door, and I negotiated my own lease.
I know what a slow month feels like when the rent check doesn't care. I know which lease clauses look harmless and cost you later. That's the experience I bring to your side of the table. My full story is here.
What Broward space actually costs right now.
As of mid-2026, Broward retail asking rents run roughly $25 to $44 per square foot per year. That's a wide band, and where you land inside it depends on three things: the city, the traffic, and the condition of the space.
Put that range in monthly terms for a 1,500 square foot storefront. At $25 per square foot, base rent is about $3,125 a month. At $44, it's $5,500. Same size space, very different business plan.
The lesson? Don't shop by the listing price alone. A cheaper space with dead foot traffic costs more than an expensive one that feeds you customers. That's a shopkeeper's math, and it's the math we'll use.
Three cities, three very different kinds of space.
Davie: warehouse, flex, and the NSU crowd.
Davie is my hometown, and it's Broward's quiet workhorse. The warehouse and flex space market here suits contractors, e-commerce sellers, and makers who need a roll-up door more than a window display.
There's a second angle most people miss: Nova Southeastern University. Tens of thousands of students and staff need food, fitness, tutoring, and services close to campus. Service businesses near NSU start with built-in demand.
Want the full picture of the town first? Read my Davie page.
Hollywood: retail with two personalities.
Hollywood splits in two, and your rent knows it. East side, near the beach and the Broadwalk, you're paying for foot traffic that shows up every single day. Restaurants, ice cream, beach retail: the traffic does half your marketing.
West of I-95, storefront rents drop and parking gets easier. Perfect for businesses whose customers book ahead: salons, clinics, studios, offices. You don't need beach traffic if your clients come to you on purpose.
I cover the east-west split in depth on my Hollywood page.
Cooper City: the neighborhood storefront.
Cooper City calls itself Kid's City, and the nickname tells you the business model. Families here run errands close to home. Neighborhood storefronts in the small centers along the main corridors serve the same loyal customers for years.
Think tutoring, dance studios, family dining, pet services. Inventory is thinner here than in Davie or Hollywood, so when a good unit opens, speed wins it. That's what my 1-hour response promise is for.
I once found a 20,000 square foot listing with 2 photos.
Two. Photos. For 20,000 square feet.
No floor plan. No ceiling heights. Nothing about power, loading, or zoning. Not a word about CAM. Just a rate, a size, and two pictures that could have been any warehouse in Florida.
That listing asked a business owner to drive out, walk the space, call the broker, and dig for a week just to learn what should have been on the page. Your time is your payroll. Listings like that spend it for you.
As a former shop owner, this stuff makes my blood boil. As your agent, it becomes my job. I pull the missing answers before you ever get in the car, so every walk-through you take is a real candidate.
What a good commercial listing must disclose.
- True dimensions. Total square feet, plus the split between showroom, office, and storage. Ceiling heights too.
- Power. Amps, voltage, and phase. A commercial kitchen or a shop full of equipment lives or dies on this line.
- Loading. Roll-up doors, dock height, truck access. If you receive inventory, this decides your week.
- Zoning. What the city allows at that address. The prettiest space on earth is useless if your use isn't permitted.
- CAM history. Not just this year's estimate. Three years of actuals shows you where the number is heading.
- Photos of everything. Front, back, electrical panel, restrooms, parking. If a listing hides a corner, ask why.
What I actually do for your business.
First, the needs analysis. Before we look at a single listing, we build your list with a former operator's checklist. Foot traffic at your hours, not just at noon. Parking your customers will actually use. Signage rights, in writing. And the neighbors: a busy anchor next door feeds you, a vacant unit next door starves you.
Then, the search. I chase listings, pull the answers those listings leave out, and shortlist only spaces that pass the checklist. We walk the winners together, and I point out what I'd worry about as an owner.
Then, the LOI and the lease. I help you shape the Letter of Intent, push on rent, build-out contribution, and CAM caps, and support the lease negotiation alongside your attorney.
One honest line here: I'm not a lawyer, and legal work isn't included. You want a real attorney reading your lease. I'll refer you to good ones, and I stay in the room while they work.
Moving your business to Florida?
Half my commercial calls now start the same way: "We're moving to Florida, and the business comes with us." Smart move. No state income tax, year-round customers, and a small business scene that keeps growing.
I handle both halves of that move. The storefront and the front door. Your space search and your home search can run side by side, with one person answering both threads within the hour.
Start with my relocation page for the family side. And if you want to know why a former shop owner became your agent, that story is here.
Questions every business owner asks me.
What are the costs of renting retail space?
Four buckets. Base rent, quoted per square foot per year. CAM charges for shared upkeep like the parking lot and landscaping. Your own insurance and utilities. And build-out, the one-time cost of making the space yours. Most surprises hide in the last two. I walk you through all four before you sign anything.
What does $10 per square foot mean for 2,500 square feet?
Multiply, then divide by 12. $10 per square foot per year on 2,500 square feet is $25,000 a year, which comes to about $2,083 a month. That's base rent only. On a triple net lease, CAM, property taxes, and insurance stack on top of that number.
What's the most common retail lease type?
The triple net lease, written as NNN. You pay base rent plus your share of three extras: property taxes, building insurance, and common area maintenance. Landlords love it because their number stays clean. Your job is to know the real all-in cost, not just the ask. That's where I earn my keep.
How is commercial rent calculated?
Commercial rent is quoted as dollars per square foot per year, not per month. Take the rate, multiply by the square footage, and divide by 12 for your monthly base rent. Then add CAM and any NNN charges. Always ask for the CAM history, because that line moves year to year.
Ready to find your space?
Tell me what your business needs. You'll hear back in minutes, not days.