Exchanging a Residential/Commercial Building

[Khaled Seirafi]

Hi,

My family's had this building in San Mateo, CA for over 30 years now. It has 5 residential units, 2 commercial units, as well as 3 office spaces. We're wanting to exchange it for a bigger property (ours has been fully paid off) since its depreciation has run out. 

I'm talking to a broker who says that we need to list the property first for him to seriously start searching for potential exchanges. I worry that if we list it and it remains listed for a long time, that potential buyers might think that there's something wrong with it, perhaps decreasing its value. I've never done such an exchange before, and so I'm wondering if anyone would have any pointers or if there's any good literature out there for me to read. 

Thanks!